


From the Ashes

by Genieinashoe



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, Post-Canon, some Amestrians are still racist assholes to Ishvalan characters, then again look at their parents, these darn kids are magnets for trouble, they were doomed from the start really
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-21
Updated: 2018-03-30
Packaged: 2019-02-16 11:52:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13053459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Genieinashoe/pseuds/Genieinashoe
Summary: The year is 1941 in prosperous Central where we lay our scene. All is well, until it’s not.OrPoor Mac didn’t realize that working under Colonel Hughes and her team of freakishly talented progeny of the heroes of Amestris would be a hell of a lot of work.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I made my roommate watch FMAB and I had a dream and now I have over twenty-thousand words for this dumb story.

Of all the places Mac imagined she’d be at eighteen years old—Ishval, the slums, _dead_ —sitting in Central Command in the office of Lieutenant Colonel Elysia Hughes was not one of them.

The couches were brown leather and the carpeted floor was impeccably cleaned. The desks were all shiny dark wood and everywhere Mac looked made her heart beat faster with excitement.

All her hard work had finally paid off. Sleepless nights, long hours in libraries, kids making fun of her for her appearance and her parentage—it had all led up to this. She was not the youngest State Alchemist to be enlisted, nor was she the most talented, but knowing that she was one of them at all was the biggest thing that had ever happened to her.

The door to Colonel Hughes’ office burst open and the woman herself appeared, smile so wide and bright that there was no way it was fake.

“How lovely to see you!” she gushed as she swept into the office. A dark-haired, stern-faced young man sitting at a desk close by the colonel’s office door rolled his eyes at the impossibly loud woman. “Please come in!”

Mac practically leaped to her feat, her entire body buzzing. She followed Colonel Hughes into her office and sat in one of the chairs in front of the desk. The colonel sat across from her and opened a manila file, removing a piece of heavy certificate paper and looking down on it.

“Mackenzie Carter,” she said. “From this moment forward, you are to be known as the Lightning Alchemist, with the rank of major around the military.” She looked up and smiled again. “Congratulations,” she said, sliding a silver pocket watch across the table with the certificate.

Mac grinned so wide she felt like her face was about to split, and her hands shook slightly as she took the watch into her hands.

She had removed her gloves before arriving, anticipating this moment before walking through the door. She had dreamed of holding the State Alchemist watch for years, and she didn’t want to miss out on the full experience by having gloves on.

The silver metal was cold to the touch, sending chill bumps up her arms. She ran her finger over the design on the front, and Mac knew she had made the right choice in taking the State Alchemist exam.

“Thank you, Colonel Hughes,” she said, happiness bubbling up inside her chest. “I won’t let you down.”

The colonel sent her a wide smile. “I know you won’t,” she said warmly. “Go home, Major. Celebrate with your family. I will see you here tomorrow at eight sharp.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Mac rushed out of the office space, leaving Elysia Hughes hovering in the doorway to her office. Her subordinates all stopped what they were doing and looked up at their commanding officer.

“Bo isn’t going to like this,” Second Lieutenant Luke Havoc intoned almost ominously.

“She doesn’t exactly play well with others,” Second Lieutenant Mishal Baz agreed.

“I’m sure our lovely Sergeant will be able to keep Major Zhang in check,” First Lieutenant Aidan Mustang hummed. “Isn’t that right, Elric?”

Sarah Elric sunk a little in her chair. “Why me?” she practically squeaked. “Bo is kind of scary.”

Elysia laughed uproariously. “You talk about her like she’s the devil incarnate.”

Sarah shuddered. “She might as well be.”

Aidan barked out a laugh. “I’m sure you will be able to keep them in check. It can’t be any worse than dealing with your pesky brothers.”

“My mom does all the work with them,” Sarah argued. “She’s the scariest lady I know.”

“And you’re the Mist Alchemist,” Luke insisted.

"That's not my title," Sarah corrected. "I declined it, remember?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "Whatever. You’ve got this.”

Sarah sighed. “I hope so.”

“On that note, who wants to see pictures of my darling boy?” Elysia gushed, pulling photos from out of thin air.

Sarah groaned and sunk all the way to the floor.

 

* * *

 

The next day, Wednesday, found Mac practically skipping through Central Command.

This was it. She had her dream job, and she only knew it was real because of the silver pocket watch hanging heavy in at her side. It was going to be a great day, leading up to a great year. She could practically see the rest of her life before her, and never before had she imagined it so bright.

Mac was so certain of that fact until she opened the door to her assigned office and was immediately met with a fist flying toward her face.

With a startled scream, Mac ducked out of the way and fell back on her butt, holding her hands up in preparation for a fight.

“Huh, you’re faster than I thought,” muttered her attacker. It was a dark-haired girl with a smile that was strangely catlike and intimidating, sending shudders down Mac’s spine.

The girl grabbed hold of one of Mac’s hands with speed that should have been inhuman, and though Mac tried to pull away, the strange girl held on tightly.

“This is an interesting array,” the girl hummed, analyzing the dark blue lines on the palm of Mac’s hand. She had worn her gloves today, but with the way the weird girl was analyzing them, Mac suddenly wished that she hadn’t.

A hand snaked out from behind the girl and grasped her ear roughly. “Stop harassing your new partner, Zhang!” barked a tiny blonde girl, yanking her back and away from Mac. “She’s had the job for less than a day, you heathen!”

“Ow ow _ow_ , let me go,” the girl, Zhang, whined.

The dark-haired man that sat beside the colonel’s door cackled. “I didn’t know you had it in you, Elric.”

The blonde, Elric, released Zhang with a scowl. “I’m channeling my inner Winry Elric.”

Mac remained in the opening of the office door, still sitting on the floor, eyes wide and startled. Being a State Alchemist, risking her life for the greater good, that is what she had signed up for.

But _this_?

She stared at the scene before her, with the small blonde lecturing Zhang and the other office workers cackling in the background.

This is _not_ what she had signed up for.

 

* * *

 

“I tried to warn you,” her father cackled.

Mac had just finished telling the tale of her first day on the job, and it seemed that her father held no sympathy for the situation his daughter found herself in.

“They’re all related to the heroes from the Promised Day,” she wailed. “ _All of them_.”

Jeremiah Carter cracked a nervous smile, his eyes warm. They were an icy blue, unlike hers, but she had always found comfort in them.

“Is it possible to ask for a transfer?” he asked.

“I dunno,” Mac murmured thoughtfully. “I’m terrified, but at the same time, I want to see how this plays out.” Her curiosity would no doubt be her downfall one day.

“I’d rather you transfer, dear,” her father said seriously, and now he looked more outwardly concerned. “Do you know how many enemies those people will have? I mean, one is the son of the Fuhrer! You can bet that kid has a target painted on his back.”

“Even more reason for me to stay,” Mac said with a strained laugh. “Can’t have someone going around murdering people, y’know?”

“Can’t have someone murder _you,_ either,” Jeremiah pointed out. “I’m worried about you, Mac.”

“Dad, listen, I _need_ this job—”

“No, you don’t,” he insisted. “We managed before the military.”

“Barely,” Mac said. “Dad, this is the best option I’ve got.” She stared at her father in his hospital bed, tubes running from his nose. “You can’t work, and I couldn’t pay off your medical bills with my job at the bar. This is a big step up.”

“I’m not concerned about the money,” he said. “Especially since it sounds like you’re going to be in a lot more danger than you anticipated.”

“Life is dangerous,” Mac replied stubbornly. “And yet, here I am, living it. I’ll be fine.”

“Not with a psycho trying to kill you every step of the way,” Jeremiah retorted. “It’s one thing for outside enemies to try anything, but you’ve got to deal with one on the home front.”

“Bo isn’t that bad,” Mac said, lying straight through her teeth. “In fact, if I have a problem, I just go to Sarah. She manages to keep Bo slightly stable.”

“That doesn’t sound promising, dear.”

Mac snickered a little. “I’m making it work, Dad. Today was only day one.”

Her father sighed, and his eyes were kind, but the dark circles around them worried Mac. “I’m so very proud of you,” he said, grabbing her hand where it rested on his bed. “Your mother would be, too.”

Mac grimaced. No, she couldn’t help but think, her mother wouldn’t be very proud of her. She detested the Amestrian military, and the last thing she would have wanted would be for her daughter to join ranks with them.

“Thanks,” she murmured, squeezing his hand. His fingers were pale, almost white in comparison to hers, but they were warm and familiar. “I’d better go, I have to get up early tomorrow.”

“My little bread winner,” Jeremiah teased as she leaned over to kiss his cheek. “Get some rest, dear. I love you.”

“I love you, too,” she murmured, standing up from the chair she’d been sitting in. “I’ll come by tomorrow after work.”

“Goodnight,” he called as she left.

 

* * *

  

The next morning, Mac was ready.

She opened the door and found a foot aimed at her stomach this time. It was clever for Bo to try and change her attacks up, but Mac knew now to be on guard, especially if she was going to be working with someone so unpredictable.

She managed to dodge out of the way, and as Bo was hurtling past her, she reached out and lightly brushed her hand against her partner’s arm.

Bo jolted and stopped, startled. “Ow,” she said accusingly, glaring. “You _shocked_ me.”

Mac grinned. “You’re slower than I anticipated,” she teased, and she heard Aidan and Luke both bark out a laugh at her quip. She couldn’t help the swell of pride that came over her.

Bo looked her up and down, searching for weaknesses, no doubt. “One point, Mac,” she finally said, stepping around her partner and heading back into the office.

Luke let out a whoop. Mac had no clue what that meant, and she had no intention of asking.

She followed Bo back into the office, and sat at her own desk.

Mac’s desk was still fairly clean since it had really only been her own for a day. She had a few things on it like a stapler and a jar of pencils and pens, but she didn’t have any cases yet. She had spent her first day reading through the team’s open cases so that she could at least be familiar in the event she was called to work on something with them.

She spent her day reading more files and asking questions as needed, and soon enough it was late evening.

“I’m running by the bank,” Baz announced around three o’clock.

“Oh?” Bo grinned. “Is this about little ol’ me?”

Baz shot her a glare. “Isn’t it always?” he sighed. “Stop causing damage on assignments and we wouldn’t have to worry about paying for them.”

“Would you like me to stop by the bank _for_ you?” Bo offered sweetly.

Aidan cleared his throat loudly to gain their attention. “And let you get out of doing work? I think not,” he snorted.

Bo shrugged. “Worth a try,” she hummed, grinning as Baz rolled his eyes and strolled out of the office.

An hour later, everyone was clearing their desks and preparing to go home. They wouldn’t get very far, though.

Colonel Hughes burst out of her office, a file in hand. “We’ve got a new one,” she announced, her eyes gleaming in a way that was almost fiery.  

“It’s kind of late to be taking on a new case, ma’am,” Luke said with a frown.

“This one can’t wait,” the colonel said.

“Shouldn’t we wait for Baz?” Sarah asked, looking pointedly at his empty desk with a frown.

“On the contrary,” Elysia said, and now she had taken on a slightly more serious tone. “He’s the one waiting for _us_.”

 

* * *

 

Mac had never seen so many people gathered outside the Central City Bank. The block had been quartered off, but civilians lined the flimsy borders of the barricades and regular police officers were rushing about.

“Is this really our area?” she whispered to Sarah while Elysia and Aidan were off talking to the first responding officers. “I didn't know we handled crimes like this.”

“We do sometimes,” Sarah responded. “And since a lot of military funding goes through that bank, it makes it our area.”

“Baz is also inside,” Luke added, hovering behind their gathered team. “He was dropping off a check to pay for the damage Bo caused on her last case.”

Bo smiled innocently, but there was a tightness to her mouth. “He should have let me drop it off when I volunteered,” she said.

“You’re the bank’s least favorite person, though,” Sarah reminded her. “In fact, aren’t you banned?”

Bo waved a hand dismissively. “ _Details_.”

Elysia and Aidan made their way back over to them, faces grim. “There are three known gunmen and shots have been fired, but casualties or injuries are as of yet unknown. We have a confirmed fourteen hostages based upon video surveillance, but they shot out the cameras once they got in there.”

“Have we made contact?” Luke asked.

Elysia shook her head. “Sergeant Elric, get on that. And make sure you keep those officers in line—we want names of the gunmen as soon as possible.”

“Yes, ma’am!” Sarah saluted and ran to a group of officers clustered around a makeshift table with communication equipment set upon it.

“Lieutenant Havoc, Lieutenant Mustang, grab a gun and find a good view of the front windows. Keep in contact.” She held out her hand, revealing two little earpieces.

“Yes, ma’am!” They took the offered devices and also ran off, shedding their uniform jackets.

Elysia held out her other hand, revealing two more of the small devices. “Major Zhang, take a look at the perimeter. Make sure any and all exits are blocked off.”

“You got it, Colonel,” Bo chirped, saluting as she practically skipped away.

“Major Carter.” Mac stood up straighter, her eyes wide and attentive. “Follow Major Zhang. Keep an eye out for the outside circuit breaker.”

Mac saluted, took the remaining earpiece, and dashed after Bo.

As they circled the building, they could hear Sarah reciting information about the robbers. “ _The tallest one in there is Ian Sandler. The really big buff guy is Erik Van der Waal, and the really small skinny one is Louis Cohen. All of them were laid off from their job as janitors at Central Command a few weeks ago, but they didn’t have anything prior on their record. These guys are squeaky clean._ ”

Mac frowned, and Bo hummed. “That’s weird that they would choose to do something illegal despite their clean records. Is this some kind of petty revenge?”

“ _I guess we’ll find out_ ,” Elysia said gravely, and Mac and Bo continued their patrol in silence.

 

* * *

 

The sun had disappeared behind the horizon when they got the word. An hour after beginning their scan of the perimeter, Sarah’s voice drifted over the little devices in Mac’s ear.

“ _We made contact!_ ”

Mac and Bo froze, listening tensely.

“ _What did they say?_ ” Elysia demanded.

“ _They said they want to negotiate with the military officer in charge, ma’am,_ ” Sarah responded. “ _They said they’re willing to release the injured hostages after speaking with you._ ”

“ _Alright, then._ ”

Bo snagged Mac’s arm, dragging her back in the direction they came. “What are you doing?” Mac hissed, wrenching her arm free. “We’re meant to be securing the perimeter!”

“We’ve circled the building several times, and you’ve located the circuit breaker. We’re done here. We need to be there for Baz now.”

Mac couldn’t argue with that logic, but she also couldn’t help but feel like they were disobeying orders by going back. "That's not what we were told to do," she said.

"On this team, orders are secondary to protecting the team itself. Learn that and learn it well, Mac, 'cause you'll need it if this is going to work out."

Mac nodded mutely, and said nothing more as Bo lead the way back to the front of the building.

They found Sarah still at her little table, with Elysia on the phone beside her. Her brows were furrowed, calculating, and she didn’t look like the friendly woman Mac had met with the day before.

“I’m not sure I’m comfortable giving you another hostage, sir,” she was saying to the man over the phone. “Especially since you don’t seem inclined to release _all_ the injured hostages.”

Elysia was silent for a moment, listening, and then her eyes flashed over to Bo and Mac. “If I send in one of my men, I expect all the injured hostages released. That’s the deal.”

Silence again, and then Elysia’s knuckles turned almost white as she gripped the phone. “Very well. I await your call.”

She hung up the phone and immediately beckoned Mac and Bo over. “They claim they’re doing this for money since none of them have jobs right now, but I don’t buy that.”

“Same,” Bo said. “If you’re gonna rob a bank, you don’t go to a branch where military officers are sure to be in and out all day. A smaller bank further from the middle of the city would be the safest bet.”

Elysia nodded in agreement. “It seems that Lieutenant Baz got in a lucky shot before the robbers completely subdued everyone,” the colonel said. “One of the perpetrators is injured, and they want medical aid. They’ve agreed to let me send in one person in exchange for the five of the six injured hostages.”

“Why aren’t they releasing the sixth?” Mac asked.

“It’s Lieutenant Baz.”

Sarah visibly grimaced, and Bo cursed under her breath. “How badly is he injured?” she demanded. “I’m not treating anyone until I treat him first.”

“What makes you think I was going to send in you, Major Zhang?”

“Simple.” Bo held up her hand, raising a finger for each point as she made it. “I’m from your team so you know my skill set, I’m the only one here that knows alkahestry, and I’m the only one with more than basic medical knowledge on this team.”

Elysia cracked a smile, and Aidan let out a huff of laughter over their communication devices. “Can’t argue with that,” she mused. “I’m going to ask you to leave your weapons out here, though. They’re probably going to make you step through the metal detector before they let you enter fully.”

“Why don’t we just send her in with a weapon that’s not detectable?” Mac asked.

She had all eyes on her in an instant, and Elysia asked, “How do you suggest we do that?”

Mac swallowed. “Well, there are three types of metal: ferrous metal, non-ferrous metal, and stainless steel. Ferrous metal is the easiest for a metal detector to pick up on because it is a good conductor of electricity. Non-ferrous metals are hard to detect in small amounts, and stainless steel is the least detectable because of its low conductivity. If we can get Bo a small weapon made of a non-ferrous metal or stainless steel that she can easily conceal, chances are she can get it in there.”

“They’re probably going to pat you down as an extra precaution,” Sarah murmured. “What would be small and easy to conceal, but effective if she needs to use it?”

“Bullets,” Mac immediately said.

Bo scowled. “You need a gun for bullets to be useful, genius. Besides, won’t those be detected? Most bullets are composed of non-ferrous metal.”

Mac shook her head. “They’re made of non-ferrous metals, sure, but bullets are so tiny that the metal detectors won’t pick it up. Hide them in places they won’t check—your undergarments, your hair,” she pointed at the messy braid thrown over Bo’s shoulder, “in your boots. Whatever. Make it work, and you’ve got copper, lead, brass, and gunpowder at your disposal.”

“ _What about the primer in bullets?_ ” Aidan said in their ears. “ _Primer has ferrous metal in it._ ”

Mac looked at all the surrounding buildings, but couldn’t find the dark-haired lieutenant anywhere. “That’s true,” she agreed, “but the amount of ferrous metal in it is so small. I seriously doubt anything would pick it up. The primer is only a few grams, and only about half of its mass is metal. It’ll be fine. She can transmute the bullets into a knife or something. It’s not much, but at least she won’t be completely unarmed.”

“They’ll see her drawing arrays when she goes to transmute it though,” Sarah pointed out. “There’s no way they’re leaving her unattended.”

“I can draw the array on my hand,” Bo said, lost in thought. “If I put on latex gloves, I doubt they’re going to ask to check my palms.”

Elysia grinned, for the first time looking more like the woman Mac had met in the office the day before. “Brilliant! Excellent idea, Majors Zhang and Carter. Seems I was right in making you two partners.”

“ _Don’t let it go to your head, ma’am,_ ” Luke piped up sweetly. “ _It’s only day two, after all, and Zhang probably hasn’t even tried to assassinate Carter seriously yet.”_

“What do you mean _yet_?” Mac demanded, narrowing her eyes.

“Later,” Elysia interrupted. “Worry about it later. Right now, Major Zhang, I want you to go start gathering what you will need and ditching weapons that will get you into trouble.”

Bo saluted before dashing off. Mac hovered awkwardly in front of the table, unsure what to do.

“Did you locate the circuit breaker?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Mac confirmed. “It’s on the left side of the building, in the alleyway.”

“Great. I want you to wait back there until I give the signal, and then I want you to fry it.”

Mac blanched. “I—what? That will turn off all power in the building.”

“Exactly.” Elysia grinned. “It’s dark enough out here now that it’s evening, so it will be dark in there with all the blinds drawn. Another great thing about sending Zhang in is that she’s trained for things like fighting in darkness. She’ll be fine.”

“What if the perpetrators start shooting wildly? The hostages could be in danger.”

“They won’t start shooting,” Sarah reassured. “They’d risk hitting each other.”

“Go to your post, Major Carter,” Elysia repeated.

Mac snapped off a salute and ran off to do what she was told, adrenalin rushing through her.

If everyone got out of this safe, she would have one hell of a story to tell her father later.


	2. Chapter 2

“I’m ready,” Bo announced. She had a bag slung over her shoulder with bandages and medical supplies, an array drawn by a permanent marker on her palms and hidden by gloves, and a few bullets hidden in her boots and other places. Her earpiece was hiding in the middle of some gauze, and she prayed that the robbers wouldn’t find it when they no doubt decided to check her bag.

Elysia nodded. “Perfect. We’re just waiting for them to call back at this point.”

No more than two minutes had passed before the phone at Sarah’s makeshift communication station started ringing. Elysia waited for it to ring three times before she picked it up.

“Hello again! How is everything in there?”

Bo strained to hear what the robbers were saying, but couldn’t make out any of the words. She watched Elysia’s face, though, and the way it moved in small ways that indicated what she was thinking.

“I’m sorry to hear that your friend is unwell,” she said, and she looked genuinely concerned. “Luckily, I have someone here very talented at alkahestry, which is known for it’s healing purposes. I’m willing to send her inside to heal your man in exchange for the five injured hostages.”

Silence, and then, “There is no catch, sir. She’ll help your friend, and we will have a car here for you as soon as possible.”

Another pause, and then Elysia hung up with a frown. She turned to Bo, her eyes concerned.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” she asked, giving her an out.

At twenty, Bo was only a little older than Mac. Though she was still older than both Mac and Sarah, she was still younger than the rest of the team, and they were all rather protective of their three kids, regardless of their quirks.

Bo simply grinned. “Never been surer in my life,” she snickered, and Elysia cracked a small smile.

“Okay. You know the drill.”

“Business as usual,” Bo agreed with a salute. “See you in a bit, Colonel.”

With that, Bo turned toward the building. She held her hands up and slowly began to walk toward the bank, pausing with each step. Through the blinds of the windows she could see movement, but she tried not to focus on that too much. She kept her eyes on the door, her gaze unwavering.

She was three steps from the door when it cracked open, and a small child stood there, eyes wide and terrified and their lips trembling. The little boy couldn’t have been older than six or seven, and Bo felt a flash of anger course through her. She kept a brave face for the kid, though.

“Hey there,” she said cheerily. “Thanks for holding the door for me.”

The boy nodded mutely and let her in. The door closed behind her, and a man was suddenly in front of her, snatching the first aid bag from her and shoving her forward. He was big, but his body seemed like it was entirely muscle. It had to be Van der Waal. “Walk through the metal detector,” he ordered.

Bo stepped forward, her blood pumping loudly in her ears. This was it; if Mac was wrong, Bo would no doubt be shot instantly. With this in mind, she stepped through the squared archway of the metal detector.

The metal detector didn’t make a sound.

Bo tried not to look too relieved as another man stepped forward to pat her down to be extra careful. This one was on the small side, so she could only assume that he was Cohen.

That meant that Sanders had to be the injured robber she was called in to treat.

Once Cohen was certain that she didn’t have any weapons on her, he nodded to Van der Waal, who was hovering off to the side. Five people, all civilians by the look of it, were shoved toward the door.

The injured civilians wasted no time in getting out of bank. Two men dragged an injured woman between them and the remaining two people limbed behind the trio, all too eager to regain their freedom.

The child by the door was yanked back roughly and shoved further into the large bank. He wasted no time in running to a woman in the middle of the room, no doubt his mother, huddled with the remaining eight hostages.

Bo slowly looked around and took in her surroundings, her gaze landing on each face before she moved on. The room was large, like it had always been, but it looked even bigger now with all of the fancy furniture that people could sit on pushed out of the way. She took note of a man clothed fully in black laying on a couch, and then she settled her eyes on the man cuffed to one of the desks.

Baz didn’t seem to be in good shape. Bo could see blood staining his uniform jacket at the shoulder and abdomen, and his breathing was labored. His red eyes bored into hers, and even though he was very obviously in pain, he looked more annoyed than anything else.

Leave it to Baz to be kind of dying but still view it as an inconvenience rather than an emergency.

One of the robbers roughly nudged Bo and shoved the first aid bag back into her arms. “Help him,” he demanded gruffly, gesturing toward his wounded companion.

“Let me help him, first,” Bo demanded, pointing at Baz.

A gun was suddenly in front her face, and she stared down the barrel, feeling oddly calm. “No one gives a shit about filthy Ishvalns. Help _him_ ,” the robber repeated angrily, pointing with his free hand at Sanders.

Bo trudged over to the injured robber and knelt at his side, quickly looking him over. There was a knife sticking out of his shoulder, courtesy of Baz, no doubt. She felt a swell of pride for her teammate.

“It was smart of you not to remove the knife,” she said.

“We’re not idiots, believe it or not,” Sanders huffed behind his mask, his head lolling lazily.

“I don’t believe it, considering the situation you’re in,” Bo replied sweetly.

She pulled out the gauze and carefully unwrapped it. Before she revealed her little communication device, she glanced around at the robbers. Sanders was too busy squeezing his eyes shut, trying to work through the pain, and the other two had their eyes trained on the hostages.

Bo saw her chance and took it, shoving the little device into her ear. She quickly combed her fingers through her bangs and adjusted her braid so that it covered the device, and then she focused on the injured robber.

Without any preamble, she yanked the knife out of his shoulder.

The man screamed at the sudden pain, and the two other robbers were on her in an instant, brandishing their guns. Bo pretended they weren’t there as she quickly went about tracing out an alkahestry array close to the Cohen’s shoulder on the couch cushion using the blood on her fingers.

She pressed her hands to the array, and blue light glowed from the design. When it faded, she looked back at the man’s wound and made a small sound of victory.

“I stopped the bleeding,” she announced, applying the gauze regardless. “But he’ll need to see a real doctor.”

“This will have to do,” Van der Waal grunted, grabbing her roughly by the shoulder and yanking her up. “Now go sit with the other hostages.”

“I’d like to take a look at that man over there, if you don’t mind,” Bo said, jerking her chin at Baz. “He’s injured badly, from what I can see.”

“ _Yikes_ ,” she heard Luke whisper in her ear.

“ _How badly?_ ” Elysia demanded.                        

“I mean, _look_ at him,” Bo went on. “Are those gunshot wounds? The shoulder should be fine, but the abdomen is a risky area. I think it’s best you let me take a look at it.”

“I think it’s best you shut the hell up and do what we told you,” Van der Waal snarled, shoving her forward.

Bo stumbled to the ground, catching herself on her hands and knees. She slowly stood up again, leaving bloody handprints on the marble floor, and trudged over to sit with the rest of the hostages.

“The last thing you need on your plate is a homicide, man,” she called out.

“That doesn’t matter,” the same man that had shoved her grunted. “We won’t be charged anyway.”

“ _Be careful, Major_ ,” Elysia murmured. “ _Don’t antagonize him. When you’re ready for Major Carter to cut the lights, cough twice, and the rest is up to you_.”

“Gotcha,” Bo said, to both the man and her superior officer.

They glared at her suspiciously before turning their attention to their buddy. Bo acted quickly, peeling off her bloody gloves and tossing them onto the floor beside her.

Slowly, so as not to make any noise, she reached into her boots and withdrew two bullets from each. She pressed the bullets between her palms and hunched over to conceal the light of alchemy, and in no time at all she was holding two knives within her grasp.

With only two knives and two armed robbers, she had to be extremely careful with her next move.

She coughed twice.

“ _Now, Major Carter!_ ” Elysia barked, and the lights suddenly went out.

Bo didn’t wait. She closed her eyes and focused, feeling the chi around her. She could hear the robbers stumbling about, trying to find a light switch, and both cursing up a storm. She didn’t even really need to focus too hard on locating them before she made her move.

Bo stood quietly and soundlessly made her way to the Cohen because he was smaller and probably the easier to take down, using one of her knives to stab him in the shoulder. He shouted in pain, and she snatched the gun from his hand and tripped him.

He hadn’t even finished falling before Bo was on Van der Waal, snaking her arm around his throat and her legs around his torso as she leaped onto his back, locking his arms in place. He attempted to flail, but she clung tightly and pressed her blade to his throat.

“Drop the gun,” she hissed. It clattered to the floor a moment later, and she released him before diving for the weapon.

Once both guns were tucked safely into her pants, Bo was back on the man, locking his arm painfully behind his back.

“Now would be a good time to send in backup, Colonel,” she said through gritted teeth.

Aidan and Luke stormed through the door a moment later, guns drawn and ready. Elysia strode in after them, her gun casually at her side.

“Nice work, Major Zhang!” she praised as Aidan cuffed the man Bo had in an arm bar and Luke handled the one she had stabbed.

Mac stumbled through the door last, scanning the room through wide eyes. “Wow,” she breathed, awed. “We did it.”

Elysia grinned. “Congrats on a successful first mission, Major Carter,” she said, clapping the teen on the back.

Mac thanked the colonel and went to help the police officers round up the hostages to get them outside and have their statements taken.

Elysia surveyed her team, beaming. She was quite proud of them, and what they could accomplish together.

She turned her back on the scene to talk with the detective who had taken lead with regards to the civilian part of the case, trying to figure out how best to fill out the necessary paper work. Luckily, the city would be paying for the damages, since the crime against the bank was considered a federal offence. Elysia was glad their office had no need to worry about paying for another one of Bo’s overdramatic rescues.

There was a shriek from behind Elysia, and she turned just in time to see the injured man, Sander, with an arm around Mac’s neck. He opened his mouth to say something—some ridiculous demand that he be released, no doubt—but Mac was having none of it. She clapped her hands together and then grabbed the offending arm, and the man jolted, electrified, before dropping back onto the couch.

“ _Rude_ ,” Mac snapped as the EMTs trying to patch him up secured the twitching man’s hands before continuing their work. Aidan let out a cough that sounded suspiciously like a suppressed laugh.

Elysia sighed, and wondered if it was a partnership that could work. Bo was unpredictable, sure, but Mac was cool and calculated. It was a deadly combination, for sure.

She couldn’t wait to see what became of such a duo.

 

* * *

 

“And then he grabbed me, and I shocked him,” Mac said proudly. “It was pretty cool, Dad.”

“It sounds dangerous,” Jeremiah corrected, his brow furrowed with concern. “Day two on the job, and someone tried to take you hostage.”

“Hey, at least they didn’t succeed,” Mac argued. “It was Baz that got the worst of it, really. I didn’t even end up with a scratch.”

Her father sighed and shook his head. “I worry about you, Mac,” he said softly. “After what happened to your mother, I don’t want to lose you.”

Mac rolled her eyes, but it was all out of fondness. “You won’t lose me, Dad. I have a good feeling about this team. They’ve got each other’s backs, and I’m sure they’ve got mine.”

He smiled, but then erupted into a coughing fit. Mac stood quickly and was immediately hovering over him, her hands up and ready to act but unsure of what to do.

After a moment, Jeremiah stilled, breathing raggedly. Mac hovered, her shoulders tight with worry.

“I’m fine, dear,” he said after a moment, his voice raspy and hoarse. “I’m just a little tired. Why don’t you go home and get some rest? If every day is going to be as crazy as this one, you’re going to need lots of sleep.”

Despite her worry, Mac cracked a small smile. “You sure you don’t need anything?”

“Get out of here, kid,” he said, making a shooing motion with his hands. “ _Goodnight_.”

Mac laughed faintly and kissed her father’s cheek. “Goodnight, Dad. I love you.”

She turned off the light on her way out and closed the door quietly. The hallway was empty and sterile white, like most hospital hallways were. Mac leaned against the wall next to her father’s room and sighed as she sunk to the floor, feeling the weight of the world suddenly on her slim shoulders.

 

* * *

 

On the outskirts of Central, a man was watching the news on a small television. There was footage of the earlier robbery being shown, as well as pictures of the three men he had hired to do the job.

The camera panned over the scene, and the man leaned forward to stare at the grainy images of the team that had handled the situation. He looked over the faces of each officer, focusing on their features until he wasn’t seeing them, but their parents instead.

A commercial played, and the man leaned back in his chair. It didn’t matter whether or not they had done anything to him; their parents had, and for that, he had no choice but to get rid of them.

If that meant taking out the whole city just to do that, then so be it.

 

* * *

 

Three days later, Baz strolled into the office like nothing was wrong.

“Shouldn’t you be at home?” Bo demanded upon catching sight of him from her desk. “Gunshot wounds aren’t that quick to heal.”

“Thanks to your alkahestry, they’re fine,” Baz said, taking a careful seat at his desk. He was moving slowly, and with a lot less grace than usual, so his wounds were obviously still bothering him. He was a prideful man, however, and didn’t want his injuries to hold him back or make him any less than his teammates.

“What surprise do you have for Mac today?” he asked, deflecting the attention away from himself.

Bo grinned, delighted by the question. “I’m stepping up my game today. She’s dodged all my hand-to-hand attacks, so I’m thinking a kunai today.”

“If she dies, the colonel will be mad at you,” Aidan said.

“Indeed I will be!” Elysia called from her office.

Bo rolled her eyes. “She won’t die. I’ll aim for nonvital areas, I promise.” She glanced at the clock on the wall. “Speaking of Mackey-dearest, she really needs to change up her schedule. Arriving at the same time every day is predictable, and really advantageous for me,” she cackled, skipping to the closed door and waiting patiently beside it.

“If there’s blood, you get to clean it up,” Sarah said, not looking up from a report she was writing out.

“If there’s blood, I win,” Bo snickered.

The door opened, and Bo pounced, throwing her kunai at the newcomer. Mac dodged it easily, and the blade went sailing past her head and into the hall, thudding to the carpet.

“Good morning to you as well,” Mac said cheerily, copying Bo’s early move and skipping to her desk. For every test of Bo’s she passed, she was always endlessly happy.

“Mac, five,” Luke cackled. “Bo, zero.”

“One of these days,” Bo promised ominously, retreating back to her own desk.

Elysia appeared at the door to her private office, looking in at all her subordinates. “Great, now that everyone is here, we have a new case,” she said. “There was a break in last night at in the forensics lab. Some evidence for some of our cases was stolen, and I want it found.”

“Who are you sending out?” Aidan asked.

“Luke and Sarah, take Mac with you. This is an opportunity for you to investigate and also make sure she gets acquainted with our favorite little science nerds.”


	3. Chapter 3

The forensics lab was located in the basement, and it was _huge_. There were screens with things on them that Mac had never seen before, and machines that she couldn’t even begin to understand. It was colorful and bright, and she found that she couldn't wait to learn more about it.

In the center of it all stood the most handsome man Mac had ever seen. He was perfect, with a bright smile as he talked with another technician, and dark hair, and big brown eyes.

Mac was instantly in love.

“Ah, Luke, Sarah, so nice to see you!”

Another man blocked her path from the attractive young man. This man was also good looking, but he was a bit older, probably in his mid-thirties. He shook hands with Luke and Sarah, and then his eyes found Mac.

“And you must be Mac,” he said warmly. “Elysia has told me a lot about you, Lightning Alchemist.”

“Good things, I hope,” Mac laughed nervously.

“The best things,” he assured. “My son is fascinated by the idea of alchemy using electricity.”

Mac grinned, and decided that she liked him already.

“Mac, this is Dr. Darion Weber,” Sarah introduced. “He’s the head of this lab. If you’ve got a question about any evidence on a case, he’s your man.”

“You’re too kind, Sarah,” Dr. Weber said. “I’m sorry to ask this, but would you all mind waiting a moment? I forgot my ID card in my office. I’ll be right back.”

Once the doctor was gone, Mac zeroed in on the handsome technician once more.

“Who’s the hottie,” she whispered conspiratorially, leaning close to Sarah.

Sarah and Luke both looked like they were going to throw up.

“Don’t say that, please,” Luke begged. “He’s too old for you.”

Mac frowned. “Really? He can’t be that much older than you, Luke.”

“He’s thirty-four,” Luke snapped. “I’m _twenty-four_.”

“Ah. You’re wrinkling prematurely, I see,” Mac said sagely.

Luke looked like he was about to blow a gasket, but Sarah patted his arm condolingly. “That guy over there isn’t just Dr. Darion Weber,” she explained. “He’s the colonel’s _husband_.”

“Oh.” Mac frowned, and then shook her head. “I wasn’t talking about him, anyway. I was talking about _him_ ,” she said, nodding her head slightly at the dark-haired young man.

“Thank god,” Luke sighed.

“Somehow, that’s worse,” Sarah murmured. “Trust me, Mac, you don’t want to go anywhere near that guy.”

“What, why?”

“That’s Ronan.”

“Okay?”

Sarah’s lips pursed slightly. “He’s Aidan’s younger brother.”

Mac deflated with disappointment. “That’s unfortunate.”

“Is it though? He’s single.” Luke wiggled his eyebrows conspiratorially. “Go talk to him.”

Mac instantly froze. “Ha, no,” she said. “See, the way I work is I appreciate from afar and never do anything about it. It’s safe, and far less embarrassing.”

“Gotcha, embarrassing it is,” Luke said, nodding curtly before striding forward. “Hey, Ronan!”

Mac felt like she should throw herself out of a window. “Oh, no.”

“Oh yes,” Sarah cackled.

Ronan looked up from whatever he was working on and grinned as Luke approached him. They began talking like old friends, totally at ease in each other’s presence. Mac had no clue what they were talking about because she couldn’t hear them from where she was standing, but she also really didn’t want to know, especially if Luke was embarrassing her.

“I hate my life,” she groaned.

“Hush, you,” Sarah chided. “Trust me, you’re not missing out. He’s cute and all, but he’s not the relationship type. In fact, he’s kind of a dick.”

“Really? Aidan seems so… so _not_ , I guess.”

“ _Aidan’s_ not,” Sarah agreed. “But he’s also pretty mild-mannered. Ronan was the baby, and though he knows how to do _some_ alchemy, he’s nowhere near Aidan’s level. Because of that he’s always doing crazy stuff in a lame attempt to keep his parents’ attention.”

“Ah, he’s one of _those_.”

At this point, Luke returned to their side. “Don’t worry, Mac, I didn’t say anything _too_ embarrassing.”

Mac contemplated murder for a split second. “What did you say?”

“Nothing, nothing at all.” Luke smiled innocently.

Luke was spared from being electrocuted by Mac because Dr. Weber chose that moment to return. “Now, if you’d follow me, please.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Whoa,” Mac breathed.

The evidence room was _huge_. There were rows of shelves, much like a library, but with boxes and random bagged items on their shelves rather than books.

Dr. Weber grinned. “Magnificent, isn’t it? This room has evidence going back to the reign of Fuhrer Bradley. Before then, evidence for cases was often scarce, as you can imagine it would be under a corrupt government.”

“That’s awesome,” Mac said, and she meant it, too. “And you’re in charge of it all?”

“Indeed I am,” Dr. Weber said, and he looked almost bashful.

“So, what was taken?” Luke asked. “Colonel Hughes told us that some evidence from our cases was missing, but she never specified.”

Dr. Weber lead them further into the archives of evidence before stopping at a shelf where a square box probably once sat, judging by the lack of dust in one area.

“The alarms went off around two in the morning,” he said. “I came in as soon as it happened to see what the damage was, but this box was the only one missing.”

“From which case?” Sarah asked.

“The box here contained evidence from that amateur alchemist you all apprehended a few months ago, the one that thought they could create a homunculus?”

“Polly Grey,” Luke and Sarah said in unison, both shuddering.

“What a piece of work,” Luke added.

“I think I read that one already,” Mac murmured, the name sounding familiar. “She’s the one that went crazy and killed her entire family, right?”

“That would be her,” Dr. Weber confirmed. “All of her notes were confiscated and placed in that evidence box with whatever else was gathered from her house when the crime scene techs went through it.”

“Why would someone steal it? Her work wouldn’t lead anywhere,” Sarah said. “That lady had no clue what she was doing. Her research was useless.”

“You know that because you’re educated in alchemy,” Dr. Weber said. “To someone not versed in alchemy, the notes look almost legitimate.”

“But that still doesn’t answer why, or who stole it,” Mac murmured. “There aren’t security cameras around here, are there?”

Dr. Weber shook his head. “You need an ID card to get in here unless you can override our security system. The only reason I know someone got in here was because the door wasn’t closed afterwards, and when it’s left open for too long, a silent alarm goes off. Security guards on duty last night called me after they called the police, and apparently the door was wide open when they got here. The cameras around the building were tampered with, but we’re not sure how yet.”

“Whose ID did they use to get in here, then?” Sarah asked. “Surely there’s a system that keeps track of who comes in and out.”

“There is,” Dr. Weber confirmed. “However, one of my technicians reported their ID missing yesterday early in the morning. That is the ID that was used to access the room. The chip in his card has since been deactivated.”

“Who was the tech?” Luke asked.

“Mr. Mustang.”

“Mac, go talk to our suspect,” Luke ordered, giving her a nudge. “Sarah and I will finish here.”

“But I—”

“ _Bye_ ,” he said pointedly, but his eyes shone with mirth.

Mac contemplated murder for more than a split second as she walked away.

 

* * *

  

 

Ronan looked up as Mac approached with a notepad in her hand, a smile sliding easily onto his handsome face. “Hello there,” he said. “Mac Carter, right?”

Mac was grateful her sunglasses at least hid some of her embarrassment. “That’s me,” she confirmed. “You’re Ronan Mustang?”

“Just Ronan is fine,” he said, peeling off one of his latex gloves and offering his hand. His fingers were warm against Mac’s as they shook, and she was quick to pull away.

“Well, Ronan,” Mac said, “I have some questions for you, regarding the ID card you reported missing yesterday.”

The easy smile on his face disappeared, replaced this time by a grimace. “The police already questioned me. I figured it was only a matter of time before some investigation team from the military would, too,” he said. “Look, I don’t know what happened to it. I keep really good track of important things like that, and my work ID is always on me. For some reason I just couldn’t find it yesterday afternoon, so I figured I lost it somewhere in the lab or the hallway, but I guess not.”

“Where do you know for a fact you had it last?”

“I used it to swipe into evidence yesterday at around 9 AM,” he said. “I was helping one of the other technicians run ballistics on the guns from your little bank robbery, actually.”

“Okay,” Mac murmured, scribbling all of this in her little notebook. “When did you realize it was missing?”

“Around an hour later, I guess. It wasn’t on my lanyard where I usually keep it,” he said, fiddling with the black lanyard with a new ID badge on it.

“Gotcha.” Mac continued to scribble away.

She could feel Ronan’s curious gaze on her as she wrote. “Is it true you shocked the man from the hostage incident at the bank?” he asked after a moment.

Mac looked up, startled. “Uh, yeah, I did. He touched me without my consent, so I made sure he wouldn’t make that mistake again.”

Ronan looked almost awed. “That’s cool,” he said. “Electricity is your thing?”

Mac shrugged, embarrassed. “I mean, yeah. That’s why I’m the Lightning Alchemist.”

“So, do you just pull it out of thin air?”

“That’s not how it works,” Mac laughed. “I assume you took chemistry if you’re working here in a forensics lab, right?”

“Yeah, but I’m just an intern. I work here part time and take classes at the university at night.”

“Well, then you should know that all atoms and molecules have a charge. I simply redirect or concentrate the charge when I need to. It’s harder to do when it’s hot outside, easier when it’s cold, and of course metal helps a lot.”

“Don’t you worry about shocking yourself?”

Mac shrugged. “I’ve been shocked a lot,” she admitted. “My gloves with the arrays are lined with rubber, as are the clothes I wear under my uniform. Getting shocked is a hazard of what I do, though.”

“That’s neat,” Ronan said, and Mac found his words hard to believe with the flirty smile that slid onto his face right after them.

“Thanks,” she said. “So, interning and taking college courses at the same time? That sounds awful.”

Ronan shrugged, but he seemed pleased to be asked. “This gives me pocket money and experience. I’m basically going to have a full-time job by the time I graduate if I perform well here, and it’s fun.”

Mac hummed. “Well, I should get back to Luke and Sarah. It was nice to meet you.”

“And you,” Ronan said, and there was something about the look on his face that she couldn’t quite place. “See you around, Mac.”

  

* * *

 

 

“So basically, you have squat.”

Mac grimaced. “Well, Bo, when you put it _that_ way—”

“Squat,” Bo repeated sternly.

“Rude,” Mac hissed back, glaring.

Elysia rolled her eyes. “Our next move is to go talk to Polly Grey and see if she has anything useful to say.”

“Can I bail out of that one?” Sarah asked. “If I see that lady’s face I’m going to punch her.”

“That’s assault, dear.”

“I’m well aware. I’ve warned you in advance.”

Mac couldn’t say she blamed Sarah. She had read the case file and seen the gruesome crime scene photos of Polly Grey’s husband, mother, and five children. She also had the urge to punch the woman one or five times.

Elysia sighed. “Fine. Aidan, go with Luke and Mac.”

“I’m being left out again?” Bo asked, quirking a brow.

“If Sarah can’t refrain from punching Polly Grey, I doubt you can either,” Elysia deadpanned.

“Mac probably wants to punch her, too,” Bo accused.

“Perhaps, but at least Mac will wait until no one is watching. _You_ don’t give a damn.”

Bo couldn’t argue with that.

  

* * *

 

 

Mac climbed into the backseat of the car as Luke and Aidan slid into their seats in the front. The minute they were on the road, Luke decided to ruin Mac’s life.

“Mac said Ronan is hot,” he tattled.

The car jerked to the side as Aidan turned to glare at her. “ _What?_ ”

“Eyes on the road!” she squawked as he went into someone else’s lane.

Aidan did as he was told with a huff, guiding the car back into the proper lane. Mac’s heartbeat managed to slow to a normal pace after she took a few calming breaths.

“That’s a bad idea, Mac,” Aidan eventually said. When Mac didn’t say anything, he continued. “I love my brother, don’t get me wrong, but he’s not exactly sensitive to others’ feelings. Especially when it comes girls.”

Luke rolled his eyes. “Oh, come _on_ ,” he groaned. “Ronan was very civil with Mac today.”

“Yeah, because I made it quite clear that she could probably shock him to death if he said anything shitty to her. You remember when he flirted with Sarah when she first started the job?”

“That’s different, you all have practically grown up together.”

“He was still shitty,” Aidan said. “And he also had a black eye for about a week, and the best part was that he totally deserved it.”

“What did he say to her?” Mac asked curiously.

“It was very crude and not something I’d ever repeat,” Aidan said. “It was bad, and now he stays at least twenty feet away from Sarah at all times."

Luke nodded somberly, as if reflecting on the incident. "She’s _terrifying_ when she’s mad.”

Mac thought back to how Sarah, who was the smallest of all of them, had so easily wrangled Bo away from her on her first day in the office. She could imagine why people were terrified of tiny Sarah Elric.

“Anyway, long story short,” Aidan said after a moment, “I’m not saying you shouldn’t because I don’t _like_ you, Mac; I’m saying you shouldn’t because I like you quite a bit. It’d be a shame if I had to disown my brother for messing with our newest member.”

Mac felt her face grow warm. “Aw, that’s really sweet,” she cooed.

“Don’t get used to it, he’s not smooth like Ronan is,” Luke snickered.

“Shut up, Luke,” Aidan grumped.

They broke into some meaningless argument, and Mac grinned at how right it felt to be there.

 

* * *

 

The mental hospital was on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by a dense forest of trees. It was so isolated, in fact, that the trio drove for the last thirty minutes on a dirt road.

“If I had realized it was two hours away, I would have brought snacks,” Mac said as they finally pulled into a small gravel parking lot. She was the first to quickly get out and stretch, her joints cracking as she did so. “I hate long car rides.”

“Might as well get used to it,” Luke said, copying her stretching. “Aidan and I tend to do all the long rides around the city, and Bo is the one that usually takes trains to new cities entirely. You’re doomed.”

“Great,” Mac sighed.

Aidan rolled his eyes. “Alright, let’s go.”

They walked into the building and straight up to the front desk. Elysia had called ahead, so their arrival was expected, but the nurse that greeted them didn’t look very happy about their visit.

“Mrs. Grey has been a bit… rougher lately,” she told them. “We’ve had to keep her isolated from the other patients, and even most of the medical staff. She probably won’t react too kindly to you.”

“We need to see her, regardless,” Aidan said.

A couple of muscular looking orderlies came to escort them to see Polly Grey. There were five orderlies total, and Mac couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious. Just how crazy was this lady they were meant to be questioning?

They were lead down a long white hallway until they reached a door at the very end of it. One of the orderlies entered first before quickly ushering everyone else inside.

The room was padded and sterile white, and in the center of it sat Polly Grey. She looked pretty much the same as her case file photo, but her brown hair held a lot more gray in it and looked like it hadn’t been combed in months. There were dark circles under her wide eyes, and her teeth were yellow as she grinned up at her guests. To Mac’s horror, she was sitting in the middle of the room in a straight-jacket.

“If it isn’t my old friends!” she cooed. “Oh, and a new one! What’s your name, dearie?”

“Uh—”

“It’s rude to wear sunglasses inside, you know,” Polly Grey reprimanded. “Take them off.”

Mac gulped. “No.”

“Take them off!”

“Mrs. Grey,” Aidan tried to intervene, “we need to ask you a few questions—”

“Take off the sunglasses!” she roared, either not hearing or completely ignoring Aidan altogether. She hobbled to her feet, and all the orderlies in the room tensed, ready to pounce should she try anything.

“I’d rather not,” Mac said politely. “Sorry, Mrs. Grey.”

Polly Grey snarled, “I don’t answer questions for rude children. Take off your sunglasses or get out. I’m not talking.”

Luke leaned over. “Mac, just do it, please?”

Mac hunched her shoulders, feeling incredibly small. “I _can’t_ ,” she whispered. “Luke, I—I wear them for a _reason_.”

“Aidan and I won’t judge you,” he promised solemnly, his usual humorous tone now serious. “Please, Mac.”

Her hand shook as she slowly reached up and took off her sunglasses. She folded them and stuck them in her pocket, trying—and failing—to ignore some of the dirty looks shot her way by the orderlies.

“Ew, never mind,” Polly scoffed. “I don’t answer questions for rude children or human _filth_.”

Mac felt her eyes burn and her fingers curl at her sides. There was a warmth rising on the back of her neck, something that always happened whenever she was angered. Mac didn’t get angry often, but when she did, it was never good.

“Major Carter,” Aidan warned, looking pointedly at her fingers. Her gloves were sparking with electricity.

Mac yanked off her gloves and shoved them in her pocket with her glasses, but the anger remained.

“I can’t believe the military still allows you people to join their ranks,” Polly sniffed. She caught sight of the watch hanging on Mac’s belt loop. “And a State Alchemist, at that. What a shame.”

Mac was _seething_ with anger now, her hands shaking at her sides. “You said you’d answer our questions if I took off my glasses like you asked. Equivalent exchange, bitch.” She smiled in a way that was definitely not polite. “Or are you such a stupid alchemist that you don’t even know what that is?”

Aidan and Luke both sucked in a breath, like they were waiting for Polly to explode, but the woman stared at Mac in silence for a moment and then burst into maniacal laughter.

“You’re a clever one, I see,” she cackled. “I think I’d like you if you weren’t an Ishvalan.”

“I’m honored, really,” Mac replied sardonically. “Now, if you’re done being a racist piece of—”

“I’ll get straight to the point,” Aidan said, cutting Mac off by placing a hand on her shoulder. “Your research was stolen last night, Mrs. Grey. Is there anyone that knows what you were working on?”

Polly frowned. “That’s unfortunate. I intended to go back to that one day.” She paused, pursed her lips, and then shook her head. “No one knew. I didn’t want anyone to steal my research.”

_No one wants your half-assed research,_ Mac thought viciously.

“You didn’t have a partner or a colleague?” Luke asked.

“I couldn’t trust anyone with such delicate information.”

“Right,” Aidan said. “In that case, we’ll be leaving. Thank you for your help, Mrs. Grey.”

“Please be sure to find it,” the woman said. “I’ll want it back someday.”

Mac very pointedly took out her sunglasses, put them back on, and stared straight at Mrs. Grey before following Aidan and Luke out of the room, the sound of maniacal laughter echoing behind them. 

 

* * *

 

 

The first thirty minutes of the drive back were silent.

Luke sat behind the wheel this time, his eyes trained intently on the road. Aidan looked straight ahead as well, and Mac found herself staring out the window at the trees as the sun sank behind them.

“Mac,” Luke said at last.

Mac glanced to the review mirror, meeting Luke’s eyes for a brief moment. Even though her glasses were back in place, she still felt like he could see the red irises. “Yeah?” she said quietly.

“You don’t have to be ashamed of being Ishvalan, you know.” His eyes went back to the road, but there wasn’t a trace of humor in his voice. Luke was still completely serious.

Mac swallowed and went back to looking out the window. “I know,” she murmured.

“Baz is Ishvalan,” Luke went on. “He’s a great guy. Did you think we would judge you if we didn’t judge him?”

She shrugged but said nothing.

Luke sighed and tried again. “Listen, Mac—”

“Shut up,” Aidan muttered. “If she wants to talk about it, she will.”

Mac did _not_ want to talk, and the rest of the drive back to Central was quiet.


	4. Chapter 4

“Squat once again, I see,” Bo said.

Mac shrugged and said nothing. Bo scowled at the lack of response.

“Polly Grey didn’t have a partner, and she didn’t tell anyone about her research,” Luke announced to the entire team. “And since the papers and reports never acknowledged her as an alchemist or her research to the public, how would someone know that there was anything to steal?”

“And why would they steal such bad research?” Sarah added.

“That first question is easy enough to answer,” Elysia said grimly. “It was someone within the military.”

The entire office was silent, but then Sarah piped up again. “That still doesn’t explain why they would steal false research and drawings of inaccurate arrays,” she pointed out. “It’s useless to a real alchemist. It wouldn’t help in creating a homunculus.”

“This is a weird one, for sure,” Elysia said. “And so far, we don’t have much to go on. Security cameras didn’t help, a valid ID was used to access the evidence room, and it’s a closed case. In all honesty, the higher ups might not find it worth investigating.”

“But _you_ do,” Baz realized, quirking a brow.

“I do,” Elysia agreed. “I find it suspicious that someone would risk breaking into such a secure facility and leave with useless evidence from a closed case when there were plenty of other things they could have stolen, like things of monetary value, or drugs, or weapons, and all they left with were some papers.”

“That’s true,” Aidan murmured. “So, what’s our next move?”

“We’ll have to wait and see what kind of evidence the lab comes up with,” Elysia said. “We’ve exhausted our one lead, so now we wait.”

 

* * *

 

 

“You’re awfully quiet today, Mackenzie.”

Mac forced a tired smile onto her face for her father’s sake. “I’m just tired.”

He gave her a look, one that meant he saw right through her. “Don’t lie to me, dear. I know you better than you think. Tell me what’s bothering you.”

Mac sighed. “It’s nothing, Dad. Just a long day.”

“What do you mean? Usually you can’t wait to tell me about your day, but you haven’t mentioned work in the hour you’ve been here. I’ve babbled about nothing but the book I’ve been reading, and you haven’t said a word.”

“Work was work,” Mac said. “Nothing new or special about it.”

“I’m sorry to say this, Mac, but I don’t believe you. Something is weighing on your small shoulders, and you’ve got enough stress to carry as it is.” Jeremiah reached for her hand and grasped it firmly. “Talk to me, dear. I’m your father; you can talk to me about anything.”

Mac sighed, trapped under her father’s earnest gaze. It was something her parents used to do to get her to tell the truth as a child; they would adopt the same imploring, yet knowing look, and stare her down until she broke.

Even now, as an adult, it still managed to work on her.

“We had to interview a woman today. She’s a bit unhinged.” She took a deep breath, preparing herself for the inevitable storm that would come after her next sentence. “She refused to talk to us unless I took off my sunglasses, and when I did, she said some racist things.”

Her father’s fingers tightened around hers. “Oh?” he said carefully, but there was an underlying tension in the single syllable.

“I didn’t care about that. I’m used to strangers being racist or staring a little too intently at me when I’m not wearing my sunglasses,” Mac was quick to say. “But Luke and Aidan were there, and for some reason, it was their opinion that I cared about.”

“And?” Jeremiah demanded. “Did they say anything that warrants me getting out of this bed tomorrow and marching down to your office to have some _words_ —”

“ _No_ , Dad,” Mac was quick to reassure. “They were lovely, really, but for a second I just… I worried that they would look at me the way everyone else does. They didn’t know I was Ishvalan until then. I’m lucky that I have your hair and I’m a little paler than Mom, so when I wear sunglasses no one can really tell.”

“You should _never_ be ashamed,” Jeremiah said fiercely. “Your mother was a gorgeous, beautiful woman, in more than just appearance. I’m so, _so_ proud of how much like her you are.”

“So am I,” Mac said. “I would _never_ be ashamed of being like Mom. But I can’t deny that it’s much easier when no one knows. I just… I don’t even know. I was embarrassed, I guess, to have someone say those things to me in front of my colleagues. It’s dumb, really.”

“If it bothers you, it’s not dumb,” he said. “It’s okay to be bothered by things.”

“Yeah, and it certainly bothered me.” Mac sighed. “But they were really nice about it, I guess. They gave me space, and tomorrow I’ll walk into the office and avoid Bo’s daily attack and listen to Aidan tell Luke he’s being stupid, and everything will be fine.”

Her father didn’t seem so convinced. “Mackenzie, are you sure you’ll be okay?”

“I’m positive, Dad,” she said, and then stood, releasing his hand. “I have to go. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She kissed his forehead.

Jeremiah snagged her hand again. “I love you, dear,” he never failed to remind her. “Even if no one else is in your corner, I always will be.”

Mac grinned, and she didn’t even have to force it this time. “I know,” she said. “I love you too, Dad.”

 

* * *

 

 

The next morning, Bo was waiting for Mac in a way that would be casual by normal people standards.

It terrified Mac, though.

She was leaning against the closed door of the office, her hands stuffed deep in her uniform pockets. Mac almost expected her to pull out a weapon.

“We need to talk,” Bo said seriously, not making a move to attack.

“Okay,” Mac said slowly, her guard still up and ready for any lunge. “About what?”

“Your eyes,” Bo said. “I know that you’re Ishvalan.”

Mac froze. “Luke and Aidan had no right to tell you that.”

“They didn’t,” Bo replied. “They mentioned Polly Grey’s comments to the colonel because they were concerned about you. I hear everything, you know.”

Mac didn’t know whether she should be impressed or scared by how observant Bo could be. “So?”

“ _So_ ,” Bo said, “I’m telling you not to be upset. People are shitty in the real world, and while the colonel and everyone here is perfectly okay with you and Baz and even me, there will be others that will look down on us because we’re not just Amestrian to them. It doesn’t matter that you and Baz were born here, and no one gives a shit that I’m related to Xingese royalty. To them we’re still outsiders, and nothing will change that.”

“Wow, great talk, I feel so much better now,” Mac said flatly.

Bo rolled her eyes. “What I’m _saying_ is this: get used to it, Mackerel. People will be shitty, and we’ll have to be twice as good at what we do to even be acknowledged as decent, but you know what?”

Mac sighed. “What?”

“We’re on the most elite team in the investigations branch in the military, and we can do things most people can’t even _begin_ to imagine. I think I know who has it better.” She smirked for the first time, and then said very sincerely, “Even if you do suck.”

Mac couldn’t help but crack a smile. “Thanks, Bo.”

“For the insult? Anytime, pal. I’ve got a ton more I want to use specifically on you.”

For some strange reason, Mac felt almost honored. She wouldn’t let Bo know that, of course. “Shut up and get out of my way, you jerk.”

Bo grinned, and all the weight on Mac’s shoulders vanished.

 

* * *

 

Aidan’s desk phone rang around noon, and though he answered it with a formal greeting, his tone quickly became irritated.

“This is my work line, Ronan,” he said impatiently. “I don’t need to hear about whatever disastrous date you had last night.”

“How is that a kid gets more dates than me?” Luke whined.

“He’s my age, so he’s not really a kid. Also, it’s not his fault that no one likes you,” Bo sweetly pointed out.

“Rude,” Mac retaliated on Luke’s behalf.

Aidan’s left eyebrow was twitching, and Mac almost wanted to laugh at the ridiculous look on his face. He wasn’t angry—Mac probably would have found that scary, and not so funny—but he was certainly a little irritated.

“ _No_ , Ronan, we don’t have any leads at the moment,” he said. There was a pause, and then he frowned. “Brother dear, it helps to lead with useful information. We’ll be there shortly.” He hung up rather loudly and stood, making his way to Elysia’s office.

He returned just a moment later. “Mac, we’re going on a field trip.”

“Why do I always get left out?” Bo whined.

“The colonel wants Mac to be well acquainted with everyone we will encounter on a constant basis,” Aidan said shortly.

“Besides, you’re not people-friendly,” Luke pointed out.

“I _am_ people-friendly,” Bo corrected. “Just not _stupid_ people-friendly.”

“Aren’t you the one that said people are stupid, like, in general?” Mac asked as she and Aidan were about to step out of the office.

“That’s because they are!” Bo called just as the door shut with a quiet _click_.

 

* * *

 

“So, I’m guessing they found something?” Mac asked conversationally as they stepped into the elevator.

It was weird being alone with Aidan. Wherever Aidan went, usually Luke was the one to follow. It was strange not to be with them together, at least.

“Ronan said something about a print,” Aidan replied.

“A fingerprint?”

“Perfectly in shape and preserved, according to my brother,” he confirmed. “Unfortunately, we don’t have anyone to compare it to, but it doesn’t hurt to make sure we see it and get a copy of it printed in the event we need it.”

They stepped out of the elevator as it reached the basement, and found Ronan waiting for them at the doors.

“It’s the strangest thing,” was the first thing he said to them. “It’s like it was left on purpose for us to find.”

He ushered them to his tiny workspace, where a fingerprint had been projected onto his computer screen. Just as he had said, it was a perfect print—it wasn’t smudged or faded anywhere, like someone had very purposely rolled their thumb on something smooth to leave it where it could be found and collected.

“That is a nice print,” Aidan murmured. “Any idea who it belongs to?”

“I checked with the prints we have on file in our criminal records,” Ronan said. “Nothing came up.”

Aidan once again examined the print. “I don’t like this,” he said finally. “This is too strange.”

Dr. Weber suddenly appeared behind Ronan, frowning. “It’s certainly the weirdest print I’ve ever seen in my lab,” he agreed. “If we find anything else, we’ll give you a call.”

“Thank you,” Aidan said politely. “Have a good day, Dr. Weber.”

He and Mac turned to leave, but just as Aidan pushed the button on the elevator, Ronan jogged back up to them.

“Wait!” he said, stopping in front of them. “Uh, Mac, I—"

“ _Bye_ ,” Aidan said, quickly guiding Mac into the elevator as soon as the doors had opened.

“How would you go about messing with security footage?” Ronan rushed out.

Mac scrambled to push the button on the elevator that would hold the doors open. “What do you mean?”

“I mean our footage from the building’s cameras suddenly spazzed at just the right moment, and had to be prepared the following morning. How?”

Mac frowned, contemplating. “A signal scrambler, I guess? I’m not well versed in this stuff. My thing is—”

“Electricity,” Ronan finished. “It looks like there was a power surge, Mac.”

Mac didn’t like where this conversation was going, and neither, it seemed, did Aidan. “You don’t need alchemy to create a power surge, Ronan,” he said sharply. “What are you insinuating?”

“Nothing,” Ronan quickly reassured. “I think it’d be best if Mac took a look at it, though.”

“Okay.” Mac stepped out of the elevator and turned to Aidan. “Let the colonel know I’ll be back as soon as possible, please.”

Aidan sighed and stepped out of the elevator as well. “If you’re staying, I’m staying,” he said.

“That’s fine,” Mac agreed, and then turned to Ronan. “Show me the footage.”

They followed Ronan back into the lab, and in seconds he had some security footage pulled up on his computer.

There were ten separate boxes of footage, all showing different hallways and entryways into the building. It was timestamped for the night of the break in, and at 1:56:09AM, all that could be seen was static.

“What would you have to do in order to make that happen?” Ronan asked. “I can’t figure it out.”

“My only two theories sound crazy,” Mac said. “Either someone had a crazy good signal scrambler, or—”

“Someone already in the building messed with the footage,” Aidan finished.

 

* * *

 

 

“I don’t like this,” Elysia said when they reported back to her.

“I know it sounds crazy,” Mac said, “but I can’t think of any other reason for this to happen.”

“It’s useless to look for evidence at any of the exits or even in the security room at this point,” Elysia sighed. “Too many people have been through these areas in the last forty-eight hours for us to find anything useful.”

“Not that we would, anyway,” Baz pointed out. “If the person who did this really is affiliated with the military, their prints would be considered normal to find with everyone else’s. We’d be back at square one.”

“Then why haven’t we found anything resembling the print Ronan had?” Luke asked.

“I don’t like this,” Elysia repeated, and Mac couldn’t help but agree. “We’ll just have to wait and see what happens.”

“What a shame,” Bo sighed. “I’m not very fond of waiting.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Was work really that bad again?”

Her father’s words were in response to her dramatic sigh and flop into the hospital chair beside his bed. Mac sighed a second time for emphasis, loud and irritated.

“So much is going on, Dad,” she lamented. “I’m too new for this conspiracy stuff to be happening already.”

“Conspiracy?”

“I can’t exactly tell you why,” she said. “It’s kind of confidential.”

“I see,” her father murmured. “Is something dangerous going on?”

“No. Yes? I don’t _know_ ,” Mac groaned. “It’s just weird right now, but I have an uneasy feeling, and my boss seems really uneasy, and I just don’t know what’s going on.”

“I’m sure you’ll figure it out,” her father said. “You’re a smart young woman, dear. There isn’t anything that you can’t solve.”

“This isn’t some kind of riddle or puzzle published in the Sunday newspaper,” Mac said. “This is real. No one is feeding me clues. In fact, any clues just bring about more questions than answers.”

“You’ll figure it out,” her father repeated. “You always do.”

“I guess we’ll see,” Mac murmured. “This time might be different.”

Poor Mac didn’t even realize how right that was.


	5. Chapter 5

Bo liked to think that she was becoming really creative with her attacks.

Mac just thought they were flat-out stupid.

“A _pencil_? Really?”

Bo grinned up at Mac, who held the pencil up with an exasperated look on her face.

“Lead can kill you, you know,” Bo said sweetly. “If I stabbed you even a little, boom, dead.”

“Pencils are made with _graphite_ now, dumbass.”

“Ah, so they are.”

Mac rolled her eyes and walked into the office, depositing the pencil at Bo’s desk before continuing to her own. She sat down and took off her sunglasses, setting them to the side. She didn’t need them in the safety of the office; there were nothing but allies all around her, after all.

“Good morning,” Sarah greeted her with a bright smile.

“Another point for Mac,” Luke said without looking up.

He turned around in his desk chair to face the white board on the wall behind him, where he had been keeping score of the little game between Bo and Mac. There were thirteen tally marks under Mac’s name, and one under Bo’s.

Unfortunately, Mac was still sporting a large bruise on her arm from that one tally under Bo’s side of the board.

“Is there anything new for the robbery in the evidence room?” Mac asked. It was a question she had found herself asking every morning since the break in happened almost a week ago, especially since Ronan’s friend with the local police had turned up nothing with the print he sent them.

And every morning since, Baz answered without fail: “Not today. You’ll know when we do.”

Mac liked to think that she was a rather patient person, but the evidence room case was starting to test her. She was tired of filing paperwork and fixing old files and doing menial work, but that was all anyone in their office could do until they were offered another case.

Luckily, their commanding officer was not about to disappoint.

Elysia appeared in the doorway to her office, a file in hand. “We’ve got a new case,” she announced.

“Finally,” Bo muttered as everyone stopped what they were doing and leaned forward attentively. “I was about to go crazy with boredom. Is it a good one?”

“It’s interesting, to say the least,” Elysia said. “I don’t need everyone on this, though. Luke, Mac, my office, please.”

The two followed their commanding officer into her office, standing before her desk as she walked around and took a seat. She slid the file across the polished wood and opened it for them to look at.

“Lisa Richter, thirty-five,” Elysia said. “She’s married to Captain Richter from Eastern Command.”

The picture of the pretty lady had to be the woman the colonel was talking about. Her smile was bright, and her brown eyes twinkled with real joy. There was also a photo of a young boy, maybe five or six, grinning with his gap-toothed smile.

Mac’s stomach churned uneasily. “Did something happen to her?” she asked.

“She disappeared yesterday,” Elysia said. “She apparently went into town with their young son and never returned. A woman and child matching their description were seen on a train to Central. We have orders to locate them and see that they are returned home.”

Luke frowned. “Was there anyone with her?” he asked.

“Not that we’re aware of, no.”

He nodded slowly, considering. “Understood. We’ll start at the train station.”

“Wonderful.” Elysia closed the file and handed it to Luke. “Please be back by noon with your findings.”

They filed out of her office, Mac grabbing her coat and glasses while Luke gathered his own coat and firearm, snagging his keys as they walked out the door.

“You wanna drive?” he asked, dangling the keys from his fingers as they approached his car.

“That’s not a good idea,” Mac replied wryly. “I’ve never even been behind the wheel of a car.”

Luke looked slightly surprised by the admission. “Really? How old are you again?”

“Eighteen,” Mac replied, feeling self-conscious as she closed the door to the passenger side. “Why, is that weird?”

“A little,” Luke said with a small laugh, starting up the car. It wasn’t a mean laugh, but Mac felt embarrassed all the same. “I was so excited to start driving. I didn’t shut up about it until the moment I turned sixteen and my old man broke down and taught me how.”

“I don’t exactly have anyone to teach me,” Mac admitted.

Luckily, Luke didn’t pry. “I see,” he said as he pulled onto the road. “Our first lesson begins this evening after we get off work.”

Mac looked at him, startled. “What?”

“I’m gonna teach you how to drive.”

“Why?”

“Well, Bo is a _horrible_ driver. She’s wrecked three cars in the last year, so as her partner, I’m praying _you’ll_ be the decent driver so our office doesn’t have to keep paying for repairs.”

“If she’s such a bad driver, how did she get a license?”

“She doesn’t have one,” Luke snickered. “Cops are too afraid of her to arrest her, though.”

“Somehow, I’m not surprised,” Mac sighed. “Am I really the only one that doesn’t know how to drive?”

“And Bo,” Luke reminded her. “Though I doubt she’ll ever learn.”

Mac nodded slowly. “I see.” Then, after a moment, “Thanks, Luke.”

“Hm? For what?”

Mac hid a smile and looked out the window. “Nothing,” she murmured.

 

* * *

 

 

The first thing they did upon arriving to the train station was ask to view any camera footage that might have been taken. The security working the station were very amicable, and had no problem at all allowing Mac and Luke to look for what they needed.

“Just let me know if you need anything else,” the head of security said, hovering by the door. “Captain Richter is quite concerned about his wife. I’d like to see to it that she makes it home.”

Sure enough, footage from the previous evening showed Lisa Richter getting off a train, holding onto the hand of her son as they walked through the station. She was frowning, and her face was pinched with something like fear, a stark contrast to the smiling woman in the case file.

Luke paused the video. “They don’t have suitcases,” he observed, narrowing his eyes at the screen. Lisa and her son were at the doors to the station, ready to step out and into Central.

“Do you think she was forced to come?” Mac asked.

“No, I don’t think so. She looks worried,” Luke murmured. “Maybe she’s running away from something?”

“Or someone,” Mac supplied helpfully. “She keeps looking over her shoulder.”

Luke nodded in agreement. “These doors lead out to Main Street. With no clothes other than what they’re wearing and no family here in Central, they probably had to stay in a hotel last night. We can start by checking all the ones in the area.”

“Good luck,” the head of security said as Mac and Luke left.

 

* * *

 

 

“I don’t like this,” Luke said as they stepped out onto Main Street.

Mac looked up from the file she was reading and frowned. “Why?”

He shook his head. “Something just doesn’t feel right about this. She obviously wasn’t forced to get on that train, but she didn’t have anything with her. Why would she randomly hop on a train to strange city with no belongings and without telling her husband?”

“According to Captain Richter, she brought her purse and their entire emergency fund that they keep hidden in their house,” Mac said, frowning down at the soldier’s statement on his wife’s disappearance. “You’re right. This one is a bit weird.”

The first hotel was directly in front of the train station, and Mac and Luke went there first. They showed a picture of Lisa and her son, but the man at the check-in desk denied seeing them.

The same thing happened at the second hotel, as well as the third and fourth. Upon entering the fifth hotel within a two-mile radius, one just off of Main Street, the check-in clerk had better news for Mac and Luke.

“Ah, she checked in yesterday under the name Jen Robinson,” the woman gushed. “Her son was absolutely adorable.”

“Could you give us their room number, please?” Luke asked, leaning forward with an easy smile and turning on the charm.

The woman shook her head. “Sorry, hun, but it’s against hotel policy. If you want to come back with a warrant, I’d be _more_ than happy to give you what you want.” The woman raised her eyebrows, smirking.

Mac wrinkled her nose.

Luke smiled sadly. “I guess we’ll be going, then. Have a good day, ma’am.”

“You as well, _sir_ ,” she responded with a flirty smile.

“Yuck,” Mac said as soon as they were out of earshot of the front desk.

Luke snickered. “Learn to flirt, Mac. It will get you places.”

Mac rolled her eyes. “Sure,” she said. “Anyway, what’s our next move?”

Luke plopped down on one of the couches. “Now, we wait.”

Mac frowned. “We just wait?”

“Yeah. It’s only ten; Colonel Hughes told us to be back by noon, so we have two hours to lounge around and see if Mrs. Richter makes an appearance.”

“Is this legal?” Mac asked hesitantly, taking a seat opposite of Luke.

He was sending a smile over her head where the front desk was. “As long as this lady thinks something is happening between us, I think we’ll be okay,” he said, winking.

There was a giggle behind Mac, and she couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

 

* * *

 

 

Two hours dragged on slowly, but finally Luke and Mac were forced to leave the hotel and head back to their office. They told Elysia about the security footage and their thoughts on it, and mentioned the hotel Lisa was staying in.

“Great work,” she said with a nod. “I’ll get you that warrant. Captain Richter is pressuring everyone to find his wife, so I’m sure it won’t be too hard. You’ll no doubt have it by tomorrow.”

“Should we go back to the hotel?” Luke asked.

“No,” Elysia said. “You’ll just spook her. She still needs to be there when you go to get her tomorrow.”

Mac wanted to cry. Back to filing, it seemed.

Luckily, the rest of her day went by rather quickly. Time always went by much faster when Mac was busy, and as soon as four o’clock hit, she was ready to leave.

“You ready?”

Mac looked up from her last file to fine Luke standing before her, also prepared to leave for the day. “Ready for what?”

“Driving, of course.”

Mac grinned.

 

* * *

 

 

“Okay, now, ease off the break and slowly push down on the gas.”

Mac did as she was told, and the moment her foot touched the gas pedal, the car lurched forward. She slammed her foot back onto the brake pedal with a shriek, her heart racing.

“Mac,” Luke said patiently, “We’re in an abandoned parking lot. There’s nothing for you to hit. You’ve got plenty of space to make mistakes.”

“I don’t want to make mistakes,” Mac whined. “Why is it that I can deal with alchemy, but I can’t drive a car?”

“You said you began studying alchemy when you were, what, eight?”

“Seven, but that doesn’t matter. The point is, alchemy is difficult, but I can do it. Why is driving so difficult?”

Luke laughed softly. “You said you’ve never been behind the wheel of a car. Were you immediately good at alchemy the moment you cracked open a book?”

“Well, _no_ , but—”

“These things take practice,” Luke interrupted. “Let’s try again, like before. Ease off the break, slowly push down on the gas. You got this.”

Mac took a deep breath and repeated the motions like before, trying her best to keep her feet light on the gas pedal. The car lurched forward again, though not as much as before, and soon enough she was driving around in little circles around the parking lot at about five miles per hour.

“That was great!” Luke praised, grinning. “See, was that so bad?”

Mac didn’t remove her eyes from facing forward, but she hoped her body was just as tense as she sounded when she grit out between her teeth, “Yes.”

Luke laughed again. “But you did it,” he said. “That’s a start. Okay, now, let’s try pulling into a parking spot. Pick any spot, and just go for it. Ease onto the break as you turn.”

It was the most horrible parking job in the history of ever, but Mac managed to make it work somehow. The car didn’t even jolt a lot when she finally pushed down completely on the break.

“A little crooked,” Luke said wryly, opening the door to peek out the lines. “But we can work on that. Want to try a few more times?”

Mac took out her watch and glanced down at the time. “Maybe once or twice, if you’re willing to drop me off at the hospital after this?”

Luke frowned. “The hospital?”

“Yeah, I—” Mac stopped, unsure of how she wanted to continue. No one in the office knew about her father, and though they knew her secret of being half-Ishvalan, this was one she wasn’t quite ready to share yet. “I volunteer there sometimes. Tonight is one of those nights.”

“That’s pretty cool,” Luke said. “Yeah, of course I’ll drop you off. What time do you need to be there?”

“Maybe eight at the latest.”

“Alright, we can do that. Around the parking lot once more, Jeeves!”

 

* * *

 

 

“I think I’ve decided Luke is my favorite,” Mac concluded her story of her work day. “I always thought it would end up being the colonel, since she’s super nice, but Luke is like an older brother. He offered to teach me how to drive, and he drove me over here after our lesson.”

“Boys almost always have ulterior motives,” Jeremiah huffed suspiciously.

Mac snickered. “Trust me, he doesn’t have any other than he doesn’t want to drive Bo and me around everywhere. She’s a horrible driver, apparently, and he believes I don’t have a death wish, unlike her.”

“Still sounds fishy to me,” her father said.

“Dad, I love you, but I’m an adult. I could zap Luke into next week if he really had nefarious motives.”

“That doesn’t stop me from worrying,” Jeremiah sighed. “Eighteen or fifty, boys will always be stupid, and I will worry.”

Mac smiled, amused. “I know, and I appreciate it. I really think I’ve hit the jackpot in terms of co-workers. They’re all really great, even if Bo tries to kill me every morning.”

“ _Every_ morning?”

“Yeah. You would think seven would be too early for her to attempt assassinations with how lazy she is, but somehow she’s motivated enough to try every day since I started work there.”

“Is no one concerned that your so-called partner is trying to kill you?”

“Well, I don’t think she’s _actually_ trying that hard. Colonel Hughes would be irritated if she succeeded.”

Jeremiah sighed and massaged his temples. “You know, this must be payback for all the stupid stuff I did when I was your age. No wonder my family always worried about me.”

Mac grinned. “No need to worry about me, Dad. Luckily, I’ve got a second family looking out for me, too.”

 

* * *

 

 

The next morning, Bo’s attack was just as inventive.

“Wow, I’d be so hurt if this hit me,” Mac said flatly, having caught the paper airplane that came careening toward her.

“No doubt. The tip of it was dipped in poison,” Bo cackled.

Mac surveyed the paper airplane quizzically. It was completely white with no signs of being tampered with, but when it came to Bo, Mac never knew what to think.

“We’ve got the warrant,” Luke said, marking another tally under Mac’s name as she followed Bo into the office.

Mac dumped the paper airplane into the trash. “Great,” she said. “Are we going now?”

“You driving?”

Mac grinned.

 

* * *

 

 

Standing in front of Lisa Richter’s hotel door was truly daunting. Mac’s stomach was churning unpleasantly again, and even Luke looked about ready to walk right by the door instead of doing his job.

“Here goes,” he murmured, and knocked his fist solidly against the door several times.

There was a pause, and then the door was quickly swung open. Lisa Richter stood there, her eyes wide with panic, and in her hands—

“Gun!” Luke barked, shoving Mac to the side.

Too startled to react, Mac stumbled into the wall and then fell to the carpeted hallway floor on her hands and knees. When she quickly clambered back to her feet and turned back around, Luke had his gun out as well, and he and Lisa Richter stared each other down, their fingers on the triggers.

“Go away!” Lisa said. Her hands shook. “Please, just leave me alone.”

“Put your gun down, ma’am!” Luke demanded.

“I’m not going back there!” Lisa cried, tears welling up in her pretty brown eyes. Mac stared at the woman, taking note of the bruises around her neck and wrists, and everything quickly fell into place. “I’m not, I _refuse_ —”

“Put your gun down!” Luke barked again, his voice rising in volume.

A tired, frightened voice came from behind Lisa. “Mommy?”

The boy that stood there was the one from the photo in the file, but instead of a big grin of missing teeth, his left eye was swollen shut and bruised, and he looked nothing but terrified.

Lisa closed her eyes tightly, and slowly lowered the gun. “Go back to bed, sweetie,” she said, closing the door behind her.

Luke quickly snatched the gun from her hand. “What the hell is all this about?” he demanded.

“Your husband hit you,” Mac murmured.

Both Lisa and Luke turned to stare at her. Mac only had her eyes on Lisa, frowning at the obvious bruising. “That’s why you left so suddenly. He hit you.”

Lisa smiled in a way that was wobbly, her eyes welling with tears. “He hits me all the time,” she said quietly, her voice cracking. “That’s not why I left.”

Luke, it seemed, had also caught on. “Is it because he hit your son?”

Lisa nodded her head, and the tears came rolling silently down her cheeks. “He was so mad, and I don’t even remember why it happened, but I saw his fist collide with Joey’s face in slow motion and I just—I couldn’t let that happen again. I _won’t_. I hopped a train to Central, and as soon as I see a train heading out of the country, I’m getting on it.”

“Ma’am,” Luke said slowly, “We have to take you and Joey back to Central Command with us.”

Mac’s eyes widened. “What—no! Luke, were you even _listening_? She can’t go back there!”

“We have no choice, Major Carter,” Luke said coldly, and Mac felt her heart clench painfully in her chest. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Richter, but I need you to gather whatever it is you’ve accumulated in your stay here and come with us to Central Command. We will figure out what to do from there.”

Mac heard the crackle at her fingertips. “Luke—”

“Major, if you’re not prepared to follow orders, perhaps you should go wait in the car,” Luke bit out.

Mac opened and closed her mouth, trying to find words. Luke’s face was all hard lines and cold indifference, things she had never before seen on his face.

Gritting her teeth, Mac turned on her heel and marched away.

 

* * *

 

 

Bo’s reaction was essentially the same as Mac’s.

“What the hell,” she said. It was a statement, not a question, and it was said rather angrily. “He _hit_ you?”

“Enough, Major Zhang,” Luke snapped, leading Lisa and Joey right into Elysia’s office. He closed the door behind him, leaving Mac to stand in the office with the rest of her coworkers.

She was at Aidan’s desk in an instant, looming imploringly. “We can’t force them to go back, can we?” she demanded. “Please tell me we can’t.”

Aidan looked up, and his face held the same impassiveness as Luke’s. “I’m afraid they have no choice, Mac,” he said. “Without evidence—”

“The bruises aren’t testimony enough for you?” Mac demanded. “What the hell is wrong with everyone in this office?”

Sarah had yet to say anything, but even she looked upset by what was happening.

“As much as I hate to agree with Mackerel, I can’t help but wonder the same thing,” Bo bit out. “I thought we _helped_ people. I didn’t think we’d be sending them right back into danger, Lieutenant.”

Luke exited Elysia’s office a moment later, his face grim. “We’re needed in the lab,” he said flatly. “Everyone.”

 

* * *

 

 

The elevator ride was tense. Mac, Bo, and Sarah had practically squished into the same corner, all silently fuming at the other three members of their team. The men all stood calmly, like they were okay with what was happening.

Mac was beginning to wonder if transferring would be a bad idea after all, and Bo and Sarah looked like they might be considering the same thing.

Dr. Weber stood before them as the elevator doors slid open.

“False alarm,” he said pleasantly. “One of my employees thought they found something that wasn’t really there, but I appreciate all of you responding so quickly. Please be sure to pass my sincerest apologies along to my wife.”

The girls stared at the man, stunned and more than a little confused. Aidan simply nodded. “Very well,” he said. “Thank you, Dr. Weber.”

The ride back up was just as tense, but the girls were more suspicious than angry now.

“What was that about?” Sarah asked, breaking the silence.

“A false alarm, apparently,” Baz said sardonically. Sarah glared at him in response.

When they got back to their office, they found their boss throwing papers and office supplies all around. Mac, Sarah, and Bo stood in the doorway to the office, stunned, staring as Elysia wrecked their workspace.

“What are you doing, Colonel?” Bo demanded.

“Where are Mrs. Richter and Joey?” Mac added.

“Oh, you know how mothers can be,” she said cheerily, upturning a trashcan and twirling to spread its contents around the room. “They’ll do anything to protect their children. Like bears.”

Mac wondered if their boss had truly lost it. “That doesn’t explain _why_ —”

“Mrs. Richter is an _awfully_ scary lady,” Elysia continued loudly, shoving a lamp off of Baz’s desk. It fell to the floor and broke, the sound of tinkling glass filling the room. “We were having a nice conversation about Creta, and what a lovely country it is—a train to the border leaves in less than half an hour, you see—and then she _attacked_ me. We grappled around the entire office while you were away, which would explain the mess.”

She untucked her uniform and mussed up her hair, staring intently at her female employees. “It was a really intense fight, but she managed to grab my gun. She threatened to shoot if I didn’t let her go, so I did. What a shame, isn’t it? I couldn’t exactly give chase. Some of these files are super confidential, and we can’t afford to let them just sit out in the open like this. Putting them back in order is a priority.”

Mac, Sarah, and Bo all exchanged looks, and though they were confused, they slowly came to understand what their commanding officer was saying. “I see,” Sarah said slowly. “Perhaps we should call someone?”

Elysia sighed. “She forced me to cut the phone lines, unfortunately. Someone will have to walk _all_ the way to security to report the incident, and by that time, I’m afraid Mrs. Richter will long gone.”

“I hear Creta is nice this time of year,” Baz murmured quietly, his mouth twitching at the corners. “I’ll go report to security. I might grab lunch on the way, though.”

“I guess the rest of us had better begin cleaning up this mess,” Aidan added. “Mrs. Richter really did a number on the place.”

“Yikes,” Luke agreed sagely.

Mac looked at Sarah and Bo, both of whom were grinning happily. She felt her mouth twitch into a smile of her own, and though they spent the rest of the day cleaning up the mess that was their office, Mac had never felt better.


	6. Chapter 6

Sometimes, Mac dreamed of the past.

She dreamed of a small house with creaky floorboards and a fluffy gray cat brushing against her legs. A living room, with an old beige couch and a small fire sending warmth and light throughout the room. Books lining walls, some musty and old, others new; papers spread on a desk, or a kitchen table, or the floor. White chalk on dark fingertips, sending dust into air that smelled like strawberry muffins.

Mac dreamed of a small green yard encased by a brown fence, and a driveway in the front of the tiny house. She would sometimes look down at her hands, tiny and childlike, covered in colorful sidewalk chalk.

Sometimes she was sitting on her brother’s lap, chalk dust on the knees of his jeans. His hand, dark like hers, would guide her chalky fingers to draw an array on the ground, one that was very similar to the one she wore on her gloves as an adult. Her mother sat on the porch, leaning her cheek against her hand in a rocking chair, a smile on her lips.

These were the good dreams.

She had bad ones, too.

The bad dreams were hard to differentiate from the good ones, sometimes. They always started out good, but sometimes a nice afternoon outside or a calm night in front of the fire became a dark, stormy night in the basement, shoved to the back of a closet and peeking through a tiny crack as a man ransacked everything.

The screams came next. Mac never knew if they were her mother’s or her own, but she remembered them clear as day, and she remembered them choking off abruptly as electricity coursed through her mother, body seizing.

Mac remembered the silence that followed, and the stomps up the rickety basement stairs as the man retreated. She also remembered sitting in the closet, too scared to move, cowering in the corner until her father and brother returned.

They stormed down the stairs, and then they screamed, too; for her mother, at each other, for Mac.

She would start to sob, then, the reality of what had happened coming over her like a tidal wave. Her brother threw open the closet and reached for her, eyes red like their mother’s, but then her father pulled him back, screaming still, placing blame. Telling her brother that it was his fault, that he shouldn’t dare touch Mac, lest she end up like their mother. Telling him to leave, and never come back.

And sometimes, he did. Sometimes, Malcom Carter left, his eyes wide for just a moment, shocked and hurt, right before he turned and ran up the stairs and out of Mac’s life for good. Other times, he looked right at Mac, his kind eyes hard and angry.

He would say things, horrible things, but on that particular night when he opened his mouth, it was just the sound of a phone ringing.

 

* * *

 

 

Mac was not a morning person.

She was sluggish and slow moving and it took her way too long to prepare for the day, but it was simply how Mac worked. She always had to add an extra hour to the time it would take her to get ready because she knew for a fact that she _liked_ to take her time. She knew that she would stand under the hot spray of her shower for far longer than necessary and spend too much time brushing the tangles out of her hair, and one cup of coffee simply would not do.

Five in the morning seemed early, but it was the time Mac needed to be up to have a proper ‘morning ritual,’ as she called it.

So, when the phone rang less than ten minutes before her alarm was meant to go off, Mac was not very happy about it.

She couldn’t just sleep through it, either—as much as she loved to sleep, she was not a very heavy sleeper, so she couldn’t very well ignore the ringing coming from her kitchen.

With an angry groan, Mac rolled out of bed and padded to the kitchen, running her hand through her messy hair as she held the phone to her ear.

“I hope you have a really good reason to be calling me at this hour,” she hissed hoarsely.

Silence, and then, “Grab something to write with, Major.”

Mac jolted, surprised by the mysteriously deep voice. “Who is this?” she demanded, feeling more awake already.

It was funny how the stranger could have her full attention in less than ten words when it usually took a long shower and a lot of coffee to do the same job so early in the morning.

“Just do it,” the caller demanded. “I know where Polly Grey’s evidence box is, and if you want to find it, you’d better listen.”

Mac scrambled to do as she was told. “I have a pen and paper,” she said, her heart beating painfully against her ribs.

The man rattled off an address, and Mac quickly wrote it down. “Who is this?” she demanded a second time once she was done writing it down. “Why did you steal the box?”

“I didn’t,” the stranger replied. “You’re welcome.” He hung up with a final click.

Mac’s alarm went off in her room, and she scowled, slamming the phone back on the receiver.

 

* * *

 

 

Mac walked into the office ten minutes before she usually did, and Bo nearly fell out of her seat.

“No!” she wailed. “You’re breaking routine, Mackerel! That’s cheating!”

“One point for Mac,” Luke said, turning around to add another tally. “She beat your assassination plot once again.”

“I didn’t even _try_ today!” Bo protested. “She beat me to it!”

“Yes, which means she wins,” Aidan hummed. “Better luck tomorrow, Bo.”

Mac said nothing, walking straight past them and to Elysia’s office. The colonel was already there, and she looked up when Mac knocked.

“Good morning, Major,” Elysia said cheerily as Mac saluted. “How are you this morning?”

Mac walked into the office and set the paper with the address down onto her boss’s desk. “I got a call this morning from an unknown person,” she said. “They gave me this address, and said that Polly Grey’s box is there.”

Elysia sat up straighter and took a look at the address. “I see,” she murmured quietly. Then, louder, “Luke, Aidan, and Bo, could you all come here for a moment please?”

The three filed in behind Mac, curious.

“Go to this address,” Elysia commanded. “If it looks unsafe, don’t stick around, but if you can, I’d like you to get into whatever building this address leads you to. Polly Grey’s evidence box might be there.”

“Seriously?” Bo murmured.

“It’s worth a shot,” Elysia said. “Mac, what else did the unknown caller say?”

Mac shook her head. “Nothing. He just told me to get something to write with because he knew where the evidence box was, and he gave me the address. He refused to identify himself, and he said he didn’t steal the box, but we can’t really be sure about that, can we?”

“Not at all,” Elysia said. “Go find that box.”

 

* * *

 

 

“I don’t like this,” Bo said the moment they got in the car.

“Neither do I,” Aidan agreed from the driver’s seat. “But we need to check it out anyway.”

The ten-minute drive to the warehouse district was silent, and no one said anything until they pulled up the a block of abandoned buildings.

“There,” Luke said, pointing. All the buildings looked the same to Mac. “Warehouse 12.”

“It looks like it’s falling apart,” Mac murmured as they got out of the car and approached the building.

“I feel like this is the beginning of a bad horror movie,” Bo added unhelpfully.

The front door had decaying boards running across it, nailed shut to keep people out. All it took was one kick from Bo to splinter one of the boards in half, and after a few more kicks, there was a small opening.

Luke and Aidan went in first, flashlights in one hand and the other hovering above their holstered guns. Mac and Bo followed close behind, Mac adjusting her gloves as they entered.

The warehouse was mostly empty, save for a few rats that scuttled about and the spiderwebs in the corners. It was all one large room, with the only door being the one they had just entered.

In the middle of all the dust sat a single carboard box.

“Holy shit,” Luke breathed. “That’s an evidence box.”

“It’s Polly Grey’s,” Mac added, spying the name written in black marker on the side. Even the case number was correct.

“Holy shit,” Luke repeated.

“So that unknown caller didn’t lie after all,” Aidan said.

He stepped closer and inspected the box. He crouched down and used his flashlight to lift the corner of the lid, Mac and Bo leaning over his shoulder to get a good look as it fell away.

Nothing seemed to be out of place in the box. There were stacks of papers and a bag with a bloody piece of cloth in it and some other evidence, but what really caught Mac’s eye was the paper on top. In messy cursive, Polly Grey’s own handwriting, were the words _Homunculus Array_.

“This is sketchy,” Mac murmured. “Those boards were really old. No one could have gotten in here without knocking them down.”

“Unless there’s another entrance we just don’t see,” Aidan said, still using his flashlight to shuffle through the box’s belongings. “I don’t like this. Nothing is missing.”

“That’s good, though,” Bo said.

“But why steal an entire box and leave it all perfectly intact?” Luke asked.

Mac shrugged. “Maybe they’re coming back for it?”

Aidan didn’t seem so convinced. “I’m calling this in. We need a techie to come down here and dust for finger prints and stuff before we do anything else.”

It took nearly half an hour, but Dr. Weber himself was the one who pulled up the scene, his face grim. “Show it to me,” he demanded, Ronan and a few other technicians hovering behind him.

They lead him to the box, and with gloved hands, the doctor carefully looked through the belongings of the box. “The chain of command paper is gone,” he murmured. “But nothing else appears to be missing. Did any of you touch the box?”

“I used my flashlight to lift the lid,” Aidan said, and Dr. Weber nodded mutely.

He dusted for prints next, and came up with a few. “I’ll have to take these back and compare them with everyone who has touched the box before I can isolate unknown prints,” he said. He picked up the box. “Have either of you called my wife?”

“Not yet,” Aidan said.

“I see,” Dr. Weber murmured. “Well, I suggest you head back to the office. I’m sure she’ll want to know all about this as soon as possible.”

 

* * *

  

The minute they walked through the front door, Sarah was on them in an instant.

“Well?” she asked from her desk. “Did you find anything good?”

“You could say that,” Luke sighed as he sat at his own desk.

Elysia came out into the main office with a frown. “Go on,” she said hesitantly.

“We went to the address, as we were ordered to, and it was a warehouse in a block of other abandoned buildings. There was only one entrance from what we could tell, and it had been sealed for a very long time. We broke through the front, and we found the evidence box.”

Sarah sucked in a breath. “ _The_ evidence box? Polly Grey’s?”

“The one and only,” Mac confirmed. “It was completely intact. Nothing was missing except the chain of evidence paper. Dr. Weber and the other technicians are still going through the place looking for evidence as to who did it.”

“Hm,” Elysia hummed, staring intently at the wall, deep in thought.

“That answers one question, at least,” Sarah murmured.

“Just because we found the box doesn’t mean our other questions have been answered, though,” Baz pointed out. “If anything, I have more questions. Why go through all the trouble to steal the box only to tell us where it is?”

“That’s a good darn question,” Elysia said. “And it all leads up the most important question: who?”

“Forgetting the box, there was nothing else at the scene,” Luke said. “Dr. Weber might not come up with anything useful, just like when the box was stolen.”

Elysia turned to Mac. “Who has your phone number, Mac?”

“Uh, my dad, everyone here, and anyone who has access to my file. I don’t exactly go around giving it out to people,” she responded. “It _definitely_ wasn’t my dad that called me last night, and it certainly wasn’t anyone here.”

Elysia nodded. “I see,” she murmured.

She opened her mouth to say more, but the phone rang before anything could be said. She walked briskly back into her office to answer, only to return a minute later.

“They lifted only one print from the box,” she reported. “It was the same thumb print they found in the evidence room when the box was stolen in the first place.”

“So we still have _nothing_ ,” Sarah said.

“For now,” Elysia said. “I have a feeling that there’s more to this. This isn’t the last we’ve heard of this guy with the unidentified print. Something tells me there’s something much bigger going on here.”

“I really hope you’re wrong,” Aidan said, and Mac couldn’t help but silently agree.

 

* * *

 

 

“Have you given my number to anyone, Dad?”

It was the first thing out of Mac’s mouth when she went to visit her father that evening, and she can tell by the look on his face what the answer will be. “Of course not,” he said. “It’s in my file, since you’re my emergency contact, but I would never give your number to someone without permission.”

Mac nodded wearily. “I just had to be sure.”

He blinked at her, confused. “Mackenzie,” he said slowly. “Did something happen?”

“Nothing, I’m just a bit stressed about a case right now. Did you finish the book I brought you last time? How was it?”

Jeremiah stared at his daughter. “Mac—”

“I really can’t talk about it, Dad. Tell me about your book.”

“… It was great, dear,” he said, and then went on to explain the plot in detail.

 

* * *

 

 

Mac didn’t sleep well that night. She was up before her alarm once again, and as she walked into the office early, Bo scowled at her from her desk.

“I’m not liking this routine change, Mackerel,” she said flatly. There was a bow and arrow propped against her desk, and Mac really didn’t want to think about it.

“I’d apologize, but I wouldn’t mean it,” Mac said with a shrug, plopping down at her desk. She looked across the room at Luke, who was already marking another tally under her name. “Any updates from Dr. Weber?”

“Not yet,” he said, swiveling back around to look at her. “The colonel called a little bit ago and she was going to be late. She might have more to tell us when she gets in.”

“Why is she late?” Mac asked with a frown.

“She didn’t say,” Aidan offered, not looking up from whatever he was working on. “If it’s important, she’ll let us know when she gets here.”

Elysia showed up a little over an hour later, her usual cheery smile in place. “Good morning!” she practically sang as she passed them on the way to her office.

“Colonel!” Mac yelped, scrambling from her seat. “Any word from Dr. Weber on the box?”

“Not yet,” she called from her office. “But since I have your attention, Mac, could you and Bo please come see me?”

Mac and Bo exchanged a curious glance before joining Elysia in her office. She slid a file across the table and sat down in her chair, gesturing for her subordinates to do the same.

“I’m putting you both on a train heading east at noon,” she said. “Go home, dress in your civvies, pack a bag for a few days, and report back here for further information.”

Mac blinked, startled by the order. “May I ask why?”

“You may not,” Elysia said. “I expect you both back here by eleven.”

Still confused, Mac and Bo saluted before leaving the office. They ignored the equally confused looks from their comrades and simply headed straight through the door and into the hall, leaving the office behind them.

“That was weird,” Mac said once they were both descending the steps of Central Command.

Bo shrugged. “She’s done that stuff before,” she said. “That means she’s sending us on an assignment she doesn’t want us to worry about, usually.”

“What kind of assignment?”

Bo simply shrugged again. “Could be anything,” she said as they came to a crossroads. Mac was heading straight, but Bo started to turn right down the sidewalk. “I’ll see you later, Mackerel.”

 

* * *

 

 

Mac returned to the office, feeling rather uncomfortable. It was strange to walk up the front steps in a sea of blue military uniforms while she wore a gray sweater, denim jeans, and non-military issued boots. Her pocket watch was still attached to her belt loop, but her jacket covered it.

Bo had beat her back to the office, dressed in a mix of Amestrian and Xingese clothing. Her long sleeved t-shirt was definitely Amestrian, whereas her loose pants and shoes were of a more Xingese style. She looked almost like a ninja.

Elysia called them both into her office, and they sat in the two chairs in front of her desk. “Here are your tickets and a few details about where you’ll be staying,” she said, sliding two train tickets and a sheet of paper across the table to them. “It’s a long ride to South City, so I hope you brought something to read.”

“South City?” Bo repeated. “Why are we going to South City?”

Elysia smiled. “I figured you could both use a vacation, and this doubles as a bonding experience. It’s your first outing with just the two of you.” She cast a pointed look at Bo. “Try not to kill each other.”

Bo put her hand to her heart with a gasp. “I would _never_.”

Elysia rolled her eyes. “I’ll see you both in three days. Dismissed.”

They saluted and went back out into the main office, waving at their comrades before heading out the door again.

“This is weird,” Mac said as they left Central Command once again. “What are we going to do in South City, anyway? We don’t have a casefile to study, and we don’t have any orders. What’s the point?”

“Take initiative,” Bo said as they started off down the street toward the train station. “That’s how it works on this team. How do you think everyone around here, with the exception of me, has the rank they do despite being young?”

Mac frowned. “I mean, everyone in there is extremely talented—"

“True, but we _take initiative_. Sometimes, Colonel Hughes will just tell us to go somewhere, and we have to figure out what we’re doing from there with our own skills. She prods us very slightly in the right direction, and because everything else is because of us, we get the glory. That’s why Sarah is a sergeant—she caught a big win because of Colonel Hughes, and she was promoted really quickly because of it. The same goes for everyone else.”

“We don’t need promotions, though,” Mac pointed out. “I mean, I’ve been here a little over a month and a half. I can’t possibly get a promotion.”

“She also does it to test us,” Bo went on. “It’s our first case together, just the two of us, and she wants to see how we’ll handle each other, I guess.”

“You don’t sound very certain,” Mac said.

Bo shrugged, a grin sliding onto her face. “I’m never certain when it comes to the colonel. She’s a hard character to read.”

“Hm,” Mac hummed.

They reached the station and were able to board almost immediately. The train wouldn’t be leaving for another twenty minutes, but Mac and Bo found their seats and settled in for a long ride.

“You _did_ bring a book, right?” Bo asked. “I tend to bring one whenever I have to take a train. Never know how long we’ll be sitting.”

Mac nodded. “I did, but I don’t think I’ll be reading much of it,” she said. “I’ve never been on a train heading so far east, so I’ll probably spend a good amount of time gawking at the scenery.”

Bo rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that won’t be fun for several hours. You’ll need that book.”

Mac shrugged, and settled in for a long ride.


End file.
